A unit of x-ray attenuation used for computed tomography scans as a measurement of bone density.
The Hounsfield unit is a way to characterize radiation attenuation in different tissues and thus making it easier to define what a given finding may represent.
It measures radiodensity and is a quantitative scale.
Each volume pixel or voxel is assigned a value on a scale on which air is -1000, distilled water at standard pressure and temperature (STP) is defined as 0, and radiopaque structures such as compact bone will be in the range of +1000 and greater.
Godfrey N.
Hounsfield invented the first CT scanner in 1972.
See: Voxel.
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