ARRT Bone Densitometry (BD) Exam Study Guide 2026–2027 | Complete Review, Practice Questions, Answers & Certification Prep

ARRT Bone Densitometry (BD) Exam Study Guide 2026–2027 |
Complete Review, Practice Questions, Verified Answers & Exam
Prep

1. Longboneshavehowmanytypesofmarrowinthemthatareusedforblood h
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production?
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Humans have 206 bones. There are many different types of bones. An example of a long
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bone is the femur. Long bones have spongy tissue inside. They have two types of marrow
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inside of them that is responsible for blood production.They are red and yellow marrow.
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2. Osteoporosis diagnosis inchildren takes into account densitometric crite- ria nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh




and:
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Clinicalfracturehistory A h
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low blood cell count
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A decrease in bone structure
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Calcifications in the aorta:Clinical fracture history nh nh nh h
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Based on the pediatric health assessment in children and adolescents, diagnosing
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osteoporosis in children involves using densitometric criteria, clinical significant fracture
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history and low bone mineral density or bone mineral content.A clinical fracture history
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may include:(a) fracture of the long bone in the lower extremity,
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(b) vertebral compression fracture and (c) at least two or more than two long bone fractures
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located in the upper extremities.
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3. Antiresorptive drugs are used to::Inhibit bone removal. nh nh nh nh h
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Therearetwomaintypesofdrugsusedtotreatosteoporosis.Theyareantiresopritve drugs
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and bone forming drugs.Antiresorptive drugs are used to slow down bone loss
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progression.Bone forming drugs help to increase bone mass.Antiresorptive drugs are
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used to inhibit bone removal.
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4. Which of the following best describes the rationale for the technologist nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh




avoidingtheadjustmentoftheboneedgesduringadualenergyx-rayabsorp-
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tiometry scan?: Reproduction may not be possible at follow up
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During a PA spine dual energy x-ray absorptiometry scan, the technologist should
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ensure the bone edges are correct.However, the technologist does not want to change
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,the bone edges or adjust the intervertebral markers unless he or she has to.If the bone
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edges or markers are adjusted, it makes it hard for reproduction
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at following up.If the bone edges or the intervertebral markers are adjusted, the
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technologist should document these changes for future reference.
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,5. Which ribs are known as floating ribs?:Ribs 11-12. nh nh nh nh nh nh h
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There are 206 individual bones in the adult body.The bones in the body are arranged in 2
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main divisions.The axial skeleton is composed of the skull, hyoid, auditory ossicles,
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ribs, sternum, and vertebral column.The appendicular skeleton is composed of the
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lower limbs, upper limbs, pelvic girdle, and pectoral girdle.The ribcageiscreatedbythe
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sternumandribs.Thereare12pairsofribs.The7topribs arereferredtoasthetrueribs.
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Ribs8-10arecalledfalseribs.Thebottom2ribsare referred to as floating ribs.Floating
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ribs do not have a cartilage attachment to the sternum.
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6. A densitometry printout often contains::Calculated parameters
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A densitometry printout often contains measured parameters, calculated parame- ters,
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the selected region of interest, the bone mineral density values and standard score
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comparisons.These comparisons are the standard T-scores and Z-scores. Some
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reports include an age-regression graph that shows the calculated parame- ters and the
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standard score comparisons plotted out on a graphical display for the selected region of
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interest.
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7. Estrogen is approved as a drug to treat osteoporosis.Estrogen works to treat nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh h
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osteoporosis by:: Inhibiting bone resorption
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The general kinds of drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat or
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prevent osteoporosis include antiresorptive agents and anabolic agents.
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Estrogen, along with several bisphosphonates, calcitonin and selective estrogen nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh




receptormodulators,areclassifiedasantiresorptiveagents.Thesedrugsstopbone
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resorption.
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8. The margin of error between the standardized BMD (sBMD) from two differ- ent
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manufacturers' bone densitometry machines is up to:: 3%The standardized BMD
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(sBMD) is an option on a dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) the technol- ogist can
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use to calculate bone mineral density when performing a PA of the spine or of the total
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hip.
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The standardized BMD is one way to attempt to make the BMD equal among different
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manufacturers ofcentralDXAdevicesforcomparingbonemineraldensity values.
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However, the standardized BMD is not an exact equivalent of BMD values forthe
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differentcentraldevicesandthetechnologistshouldexpectbetweena1-3% error
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margin.
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9. An example of a selective estrogen receptor modular drug used for the
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treatment of osteoporosis is:: Raloxifene
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Raloxifene, brand name Evista, is a drug used for treating and preventing osteo- porosis. nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh




Thisdrugisclassifiedasaselectiveestrogenreceptormodulator(SERMs) and works like
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estrogen, a hormone made in the woman's body, to increase bone thickness or density.
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, Raloxifenewasapprovedbythe FDA in1997asa drugforpreventing osteoporosis. Then, h
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in 1999, the FDA approved raloxifene for the treatment of osteoporosis. Side effects of
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this medication may include hot flashes, cramping in the legs, swelling
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in the extremities, such as the hands, ankles and lower legs, pain in the joints and
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problems falling asleep.
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The remaining answer choices, alendronate, risedronate and ibandronate, are com-
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mon bisphosphonate drugs used to treat osteoporosis.
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10. What is the most common form of osteoporosis?:Primary. nh nh nh nh nh nh nh h
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Osteoporosis is a condition that will cause the bones to become brittle and weak. There nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh




are4maintypesofosteoporosis.Theyareprimary,secondary,osteogenesis imperfecta,
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and idiopathic juvenile.Primary is the most common type.It is most commonly found in
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women.
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11. WhichofthefollowingisapointofreferencefortheT-score?:Population mean h
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peak bone mass
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The population mean peak bone mass is a source of reference for theT-score.A
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population mean peak bone mass is calculated based on a group or community of people
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basedonspecificcharacteristics.TheT-scoreiscomparedtothepopulation mean peak
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bone mass.Further, the peak bone mass is the maximum bone mass. This maximum
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bone mass is typically reached by the ages of 30 to 35.
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12. What is an osteoclast?: Cell.Osteoclasts are cells. They break down the bone. h
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When they get a signal, their next action is to enter the bones and secrete enzymes. These
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enzymesareusedtobreakdownmineralsandcollagen.Theydonotdamage the bone.
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13. During the quality control process for a DXA system,the phantom helps nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh h
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establish:: Baseline values
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AqualitycontrolprocessiscriticaltoensuretheDXAsystemanditssoftwareworks
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correctly before performing a scan on a patient.The quality control procedure is
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typically performed on a daily basis where a phantom is scanned and used to set the
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baseline values.
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Thesebaselinevaluesareusedforcalibration.Forinstance,aphantomisscanned daily
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as part of a facility's quality control procedures.The daily values from the scan are
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compared to baseline values established during the original scan of the phantom.This
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comparison provides data on whether the DXA machine is working properly (i.e., the
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stability of the machine and its ability to reproduce results).
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14. Which of the following is a region in the vertebral column? nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh nh




Cervical
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Thoracic
Lumbar:Cervical,Thoracic and Lumbar nh h
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