Peripheral quantitative computed tomography

pQCT is an abbreviation for Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography. It is a type of quantitative CT scan (QCT), used for making quantitative measurements of the bone mineral density (BMD) in a peripheral part of the body.

Unlike most other common techniques for measuring BMD, a pQCT scan is able to measure volumetric bone mineral density, plus other measures such as the stress-strain index (SSI) and the geometry of the bone. For example DXA is only able to provide the areal bone mineral density.

It is useful for measuring bone strength.