How Great is Greater Tuberosity? – A Analysis by CT Multiplanar Reconstruction

Abstract

Objective: This study was designed to explore the precise size of the greater tuberosity of humerus in Chinese population.Methods: The radiologic study was performed on 66 CTs of shoulder from the hospital’s CT scan database of out-patient department from December 2018 to February 2020. This study designed a method to measure the size of the greater tuberosity (GT). The width, height and thickness of the greater tuberosity were measured on CT image multiplanar reconstructions (MPR), which was independently conducted by two observers.Results: 66 intact shoulders CT scans were analyzed, including 26 women and 40 men with a mean age of 36.79 ± 9.17 years, with 41 right and 25 left shoulders. There were no significant differences in GT width, GT height, GT thickness and PH thickness between two observers. The ICC for the GT width measurements taken by CT was 0.872. The ICC for the GT height was 0.810. The ICC for the GT thickness was 0.777. The ICC for the PH thickness was 0.971. For male cases, the total PH thickness was 51.06±2.30 (45.70-55.20) mm for female cases, the total PH thickness was 45.79±2.57 (41.40-51.25) mm. Gender have a significant impact on the results, man had a larger GT than woman.Conclusions: The method was an applicable way the measure the size of greater tuberosity, it showed good reliability. The size of GT in male cases was larger than female. These data provides important information for further research and clinical practice.