Preoperative metaphyseal cancellous bone density is associated with intraoperative conversion to stemmed total shoulder arthroplasty.

Metaphyseal cancellous bone density can be calculated on preoperative CT scans and is associated with intraoperative conversion to a stemmed humeral component in anatomic shoulder arthroplasty. A threshold of 20 HU can be used to predict which patients are more likely to require stemmed components.