An Assessment of the Size of Sella Turcica Among Adult Nigerians Resident in Lagos

Abstract

Abstract:One of the clinical significance of the sella turcica is the empty sella syndrome which is the condition of a shrunken or flattened pituitary gland; hence a familiarity with the sella turcica anatomy and radiological appearance is of great importance. The present study investigated the normal dimensions of the sella turcica and the relationship with gender and age in adult Nigerians resident in Lagos, using computed tomographs of patients who underwent CT head examination. This was carried out to determine if the dimensions of sella turcica vary with age, gender and race; this is with a view to providing normal, standard reference for the indigenous population in Nigeria. This study assessed: the length, the depth and the anteroposterior diameter of the sella turcica; 297 samples were obtained and analyzed using SPSS Windows Version 14.0. T-test was used for the statistical analysis and values obtained were expressed as mean±S.E.M. and P value ˂ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The results showed the mean length of 9.81±0.094mm; the mean antero-posterior diameter of 11.37±0.090mm and the mean depth of 8.49±0.08mm. It was also observed that neither the age group nor the gender of the patients is a determinant of the sella turcica dimensions. Furthermore, the males tend to have slightly larger sella turcica dimensions than the females and the values from the present study are lower than those reported in Caucasian studies. The size of pituitary gland can be roughly estimated from the dimensions of sella turcica obtained from radiological methods in pathological conditions since disease conditions of the "master gland" ultimately affect the size of the sella turcica.

Metric Analysis of Sella Turcica for Sex Identification Using Multidetector Computed Tomography in a Sample of Adult Egyptians.

“…On the other hand, in contrast to our findings and to the above-mentioned studies that reported sexual dimorphism of Sella Turcica; in Iraqi population (Hasan et al, 2016b), in Nigerian population (Olubunmi et al, 2016;Ejike et al, 2017), in Bangladeshi population (Islam at al., 2017), in Indian populations (Shaha et al, 2017), and in Turkish population (Taner et al, 2019); reported absence of sex related difference in Sella measurements.…”

“…Sexual dimorphism of Sella Turcica measurements is still a point of controverse among different populations (Olubunmi et al, 2016;Islam at al., 2017;Turamanlar et al, 2017;Chou et al, 2021). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the sex related differences in the metric measures of Sella Turcica and its boundaries of clinoid processes among a sample of adult Egyptian population; in line with establishing sex determination statistical models specific for Egyptian population.…”

Potential role of the sella turcica X-ray imaging aspects for sex estimation in the field of forensic anthropology: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Of the articles included, six performed correlations with the skeletal class [ 5 , 9 , 17 , 22 , 26 , 28 ] ( Table 1 ). Regarding the type of examination, seven articles used lateral view radiographs [ 5 , 8 , 16 , 20 , 22 , 26 , 28 ]; and nine CT scans [ 9 , 11 , 12 , 17 , 21 , 25 , 27 , 29 , 30 ], five of which were CBCTs [ 9 , 12 , 17 , 27 , 29 ]. Most studies digitally analyzed the images [ 8 , 9 , 11 , 12 , 17 , 20 , 21 , 25 , 29 , 30 ] ( n = 12).…”

“…Several investigations have been carried out with non-syndromic individuals in different populations aiming at evaluating the morphology and parameters of normality of the ST [ 4–31 ]. For this purpose, cephalometric radiographs (CR) [ 4–8 , 16 , 18–20 , 22–24 , 26 , 27 ], as well as multislice computed tomography (MSCT) [ 10 , 11 , 13–15 , 21 , 25 , 30 ] and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images have been employed [ 9 , 12 , 17 , 27 , 29 , 31 ]. Local and regional validation of these methods are of great relevance because of possible variations in different populations, and some studies have already found significant differences in ST morphology among different ethnic groups [ 18 , 19 ].…”

Relationship of the Morphology and Size of Sella Turcica with Dental Anomalies and Skeletal Malocclusions

“…Sathyanarayana et al [9] found no significant correlation between the ST depth and diameter with gender, but the ST length was significantly greater in males than females. Also, Yan et al [31], Shrestha et al [33], Islam et al [42], Olubunmi et al [43], Valizadeh et al [34], and Nagaraj et al [44] found no significant correlation between the ST dimensions and gender. Hasan et al [45] indicated no significant difference between males and females in ST dimensions, except in ST depth.…”