ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the relationship between cross‐sectional area (CSA) and average CT value of posterior vertebral extensor group and bone mineral density(BMD) in postmenopausal women .Methods Totally 114 postmenopausal women being eligible for inclusion were enrolled .All the subjects ,ages range from 55 to 87 years old ,underwent quantitative computed tomography(QCT) scans from December 2015 to December 2016 in Beijing Jishuitan Hospital .The original image was transmitted to the image postprocessing workstation ,using Mindways QCT Pro software ,vertebral bone mineral density of L2-L4 were meas‐ured .CSA and average CT value of bilateral posterior vertebral muscles were measured by 2 diagnostic physicians in the L4 verte‐bral body horizontal axis CT images ,and analyzed respectively .Results Average CT values of posterior vertebral muscles between the left and the right side had a significant difference (P<0 .01) .The average CT value of bilateral posterior vertebral muscles was positively correlated with lumbar bone mineral density measured by QCT(P<0 .01) .There was no significant correlation between the CSA of posterior vertebral extensor group and BMD .Conclusion The loss of posterior vertebral muscle mass may be an impor‐tant risk factor for osteoporosis .The average CT value of posterior vertebral extensor group is more promising than CSA in the e‐valuation of the degenerative muscles .