RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Bone densitometry in children assessed by dual x ray absorptiometry: uses and pitfalls JF Archives of Disease in Childhood JO Arch Dis Child FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health SP 795 OP 798 DO 10.1136/adc.88.9.795 VO 88 IS 9 A1 M S Fewtrell YR 2003 UL http://adc.bmj.com/content/88/9/795.abstract AB The importance of bone growth and mineralisation during childhood for bone health in adult life is increasingly accepted, with both nutritional factors1 and exercise2 being recognised as influential for normal skeletal development. The appreciation that infancy and childhood are important periods of life for bone development has led to a need for suitable methods for monitoring bone health, both for research purposes and for clinical monitoring of individuals, and hence to an increasing use of bone densitometry in children. This review discusses the role and potential pitfalls of this technique.