Histomorphometric Methods Applied to Bone

Abstract

Histomorphometry, or quantitative histology, consists of counting or measuring tissue components: the cells or the extracellular constituents or both. Because of the well-architectured three-dimensional organization of bone tissue, because this tissue is continuously remodelled throughout life, and because most types of bone diseases are anatomically characterized by a quantitative abnormality, this quantitative approach is particularly advantageous for the analysis of age-related physiological bone changes and of the pathophysiology of bone diseases. Indeed, bone histomorphometry applied to well-preserved undecalcified samples permits the measurement not only of static parameters, such as the bone volume, the imprints of previous bone remodelling events and the number of cells, but also of dynamic parameters, by the use of the tetracycline double labelling procedure (Frost 1969). This process has permitted the introduction of the dimension of time into the quantitative analysis, thus providing access to vital information on organ, tissue and cell turnover kinetics.