Automatic region of interest locator for AP spinal images and for hip images in bone densitometry

A method comprising:

• computer-analyzing grayscale, anterior-posterior, in-vivo, projective image data of the hip of a patient taken with a dual-energy bone densitometer to identify a global region of interest that contains both soft tissue and bone;
• computer-processing data functionally related to said image data obtained with the densitometer to (a) automatically identify, without necessitating user intervention, a global region of interest, and (b) automatically identify, without necessitating user intervention, one or more sub-regions of interest that are related to the global region and have selected positions with respect to selected bone anatomical features represented in said image data;
• and
• further computer-processing data functionally related to the image data obtained with the densitometer and pertaining to one or more of the sub-regions to derive site-specific estimates of bone mineral density related to bone present the one or more of the sub-regions for use in assessing future fracture risk for the patient.