Publications by authors named "Alison K Heilbronner"

Context: Many individuals at high risk for fracture are never evaluated for osteoporosis and subsequently do not receive necessary treatment. Utilization of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is burgeoning, providing an ideal opportunity to use MRI to identify individuals with skeletal deficits. We previously reported that MRI-based bone texture was more heterogeneous in postmenopausal women with a history of fracture compared to controls.

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Spine fusion surgery is one of the most common orthopedic procedures, with over 400,000 performed annually to correct deformities and pain. However, complications occur in approximately one third of cases. While many of these complications may be related to poor bone quality, it is difficult to detect bone abnormalities prior to surgery.

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Individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have an increased risk of fragility fracture despite exhibiting normal to high bone mineral density (BMD). Conditions arising from T2DM, such as reduced bone turnover and alterations in microarchitecture, may contribute to skeletal fragility by influencing bone morphology and microdamage accumulation. The objectives of this study were (i) to characterize the effect of T2DM on microdamage quantity and morphology in cancellous bone, and (ii) relate the accumulation of microdamage to the cancellous microarchitecture.

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