Imaging the femoral cortex: Thickness, density and mass from clinical CT

► Focal thinning of cortical bone in the proximal femur predisposes a hip to fracture. ► Thinning is difficult to detect in CT since the cortex may be narrower than the PSF. ► We present a model-fitting technique to estimate cortical thickness, density and mass. ► Evaluation on cadaveric femurs confirms accurate measurement of mass and peak density. ► Thickness errors do not exceed 20% and are confined to regions of thin cortex.