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Sex- and Population-Specific Formulas for Glenoid Height-Based Assessment of Glenoid Bone Loss: A Systematic Review
Woo-Sung Do1, Tae-Hwan Yoon1, Joon-Ryul Lim1
1Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Arthroscopy and Joint Research Institute, Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Background:
Assessment of glenoid bone loss is essential in managing anterior shoulder instability. Although glenoid height-based methods are straightforward and practical for estimating native glenoid width in injured shoulders, inconsistent formulas across studies have created uncertainty in clinical practice, possibly due to population differences.
Purpose:
To systematically review the literature to (1) compare glenoid height and width according to sex and population and (2) synthesize unique sex- and population-specific regression equations for height-based assessment of glenoid bone loss.
Study Design:
Systematic review and meta-analysis; Level of evidence, 3.
Methods:
A systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar were searched through July 2025 for studies reporting glenoid height and width using computed tomography. Data on demographics, glenoid height, width, and regression equations were extracted. Risk of bias was assessed using the Methodological Index for Non-Randomized Studies (MINORS) criteria. Pooled mean differences were calculated using random-effects meta-analysis, and sex- and population-specific regression equations were synthesized with inverse-variance weighting.
Results:
Five studies comprising 819 shoulders met the inclusion criteria. The MINORS scores ranged from 9 to 10 (out of 16). Males had significantly larger glenoid dimensions than females, with mean differences of 5.30 mm in height and 4.52 mm in width (both P < .0001). Western and Asian populations did not differ in glenoid height (P = .7562), but Western populations had significantly greater glenoid width (mean difference, 3.42 mm; P = .0043). Synthesized regression equations confirmed linear relationships between glenoid height and width, with regression models differing according to sex and population. Of note, Western females were predicted to have greater glenoid width than Asian males and females at equivalent glenoid heights.
Conclusion:
Estimating glenoid width from glenoid height has been proposed in multiple studies. Because this relationship differs by sex and population, subgroup-specific regression equations should be applied when making such estimations. While these formulas do not represent an individual's native glenoid anatomy, they can serve as reference values and support surgical decision-making, reinforcing the importance of population-specific strategies in instability surgery.
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