DEXA Examination Sites Receptive To Male Patients

Is anyone aware of a diagnostic center in the Washington, DC or Baltimore area that is receptive to male patients? When I received my first DEXA Scan at a facility in Annapolis, the reception I was given and the manner in which I was treated made it very clear that both the staff and other patients felt uncomfortable with my presence in the area where DEXA scans were being given. In order to have a one year follow-up exam on the same machine, I have made special arrangements for the scan to be done outside of normal business hours. The director of the facility told me that they try to limit the presence of men in the DEXA examination area. She was very surprised when I directed her to information on the National Osteoporosis Foundation website that states that there are an estimated two million men in the United States alone that have this condition. After this next scan, I would like to go somewhere where I need not feel uncomfortable or compelled to make special arrangements

By MotherGoose
Posted August 18, 2008 at 7:00 am
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It appears that this DEXA area was planned with only women in mind. Often mammograms are done in the same vicinity, hence the sensitivity to their women patients. Whoever was responsible for the planning of this facility -- and for the presumed regulatory credentialing -- did not have awareness of the numbers of men with bone loss. This is not new knowledge -- men have been identified with osteoporosis for many years -- before the technology we now have such as DEXA. Shame on somebody!
Lucy Buckley PT aka Mother Goose
PS. Contact NOF directly as to osteoporosis centers in the DC/Baltimore area.

By Bill2
Posted August 18, 2008 at 8:25 am
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Thank you for your comment. You are correct, this particular facility in Annapolis was not set up with males in mind. Mammograms are carried out in the same area where DEXA scans are done. Generally, I have found that Osteoporosis is widely not considered as part of the male health profile. Similarly, I believe that for many years the needs of women with heart problems were overlooked because the majority of patients were males. I was diagnosed with Idiopathic Osteoporosis last year. My doctor believes I may have failed to achieve a high peak bone mass when I was young as a result of a family history of this disease. I will ask NOF if they can suggest another testing facility.

By windblown
Posted August 19, 2008 at 2:51 pm
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Hi Bill: Have you looked for a facility that is ISCD (International Soc of Clinical Densitom) approved? If you go to their web site it will give a list of Dr.'s and imaging centers, in your area, that have this approval. If you read their position paper, their goal is to treat all women, children and men with osteoporosis. Not all Dr.'s and centers have this approval, but the better ones do. You might want to check it out.

Sorry to hear that some facilities are still ignorant.

http://www.iscd.org/Visitors/certification/registry/Index.cfm

By Bill2
Posted August 19, 2008 at 7:09 pm
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Hi,

Thanks very much for this information. I'm glad that the International Society For Clinical Densitometry (ISCD) will have a facility accreditation program that they will be launching late this year. Special arrangements have been made for me to receive my next DEXA scan at the same location where I received my first. I did want one follow-up scan on the same machine. However, after that, I will find another diagnostic center. I'm hoping that the ISCD site will be very helpful for me to do that.

By windblown
Posted August 20, 2008 at 5:20 pm
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Hi Bill: I'm so glad the ISCD info helped. I'm still having a really hard time wrapping my head around your situation. I've had dxa's in 2 different locations, and neither is set up to exclude anyone. I've also had 2 QCT's which of course is done at a hospital imaging center that has to treat everyone for varying types of CT scans, not just bone density testing. The Dr that is treating me is ISCD accredited, as is all there dxa tech's and I see many men in the clinic. I go to a Osteo Research Center at a Univ Med Clinic, but I've never heard of the treatment you are receiving, my word it's 2008, osteo in men isn't a new thing!!!! This doesn't say much for the one you went to, and in Annapolis, isn't that a metro city; gee I wonder where the Navy personnel go, probably somewhere on the base.

The ISCD site for locating approved facilities is easy to use with a city/state name or a Dr.'s name and country.

Good luck to you and I hope this doesn't happen again.

By Bill2
Posted August 21, 2008 at 6:45 am
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Hi Again,

Thanks for your good wishes. I’m confident that I will find a center in the DC/Baltimore area where I can feel comfortable having a test done. The center in Annapolis must have been set up by someone who was unaware of the extent of male Osteoporosis. The people who scheduled me to receive my first scan were at a different location and didn’t realize that they were sending me to receive a scan in a facility that performs both DEXA Scans and Mammographs at the same time in the same area. It was really rather humorous, the discomfort of the staff, me being offered a pink gown to wear, the audible surprise of a partly clad female patient who saw me in the area. When I recently spoke to the director of the facility about a follow-up, I requested that I be examined outside of their normal hours. She agreed and stated that they are not setup to process male patients.

There are many in the medical community who do encourage at risk males to be tested. However, the existence of testing arrangements like this, discourages men from being tested and helps ensure they will continue to be under diagnosed and untreated.

Welcome to Inspire!

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