Many years ago, the only way for a doctor to know if someone had osteoporosis was if they had broken a bone and fit the criteria for the disease demographics such as age or sex. Today, modern radiologic technology has made it possible to determine whether someone has osteoporosis before they even fracture or break a bone. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry or DXA scan—also known as bone density scans or bone densitometry—can test whether someone has osteoporosis using X-ray imaging. Below, we will discuss the ins and outs of bone densitometry including how it works, who it’s for, and why we use it.