Simple method of glenoid bone loss calculation using ipsilateral magnetic resonance imaging

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Radiology
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Current methods for estimating glenoid bone loss in chronic shoulder instability are complex, involving CT scans, specialized software, or contralateral shoulder imaging.
• An ideal method for glenoid measurement would simplify the process by utilizing only magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the injured shoulder.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if glenoid height measurements from MRI, along with patient sex, can effectively estimate glenoid width.
• To establish a simpler, MRI-based method for assessing glenoid bone loss in patients with shoulder instability.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study involving bilateral shoulder MRIs from 1264 healthy young athletes.
• Musculoskeletal radiologist measured glenoid height and width from sagittal MRI views.
• Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were used to identify predictors of glenoid width.

Main Results:

• Mean glenoid width was 26.67 mm and mean glenoid height was 42.15 mm.
• Significant sex-based differences were observed in both glenoid width and height (P < .0001).
• A strong correlation (r = 0.56) was found between glenoid height and width, leading to the development of predictive formulas for males and females.

Conclusions:

• Glenoid height, measured via MRI, can reliably estimate glenoid width, with distinct formulas developed for males and females.
• The established formulas provide a simplified method for calculating glenoid bone loss using only an MRI of the affected shoulder.
• This MRI-based approach offers a practical alternative to current, more complex methods for assessing glenoid bone loss.