A prospective study to determine and compare the sizes of the frontal sinus by age and gender

Abstract

Introduction: Determination of gender and estimation of stature from the skeleton is vital to medicolegal inquiries. CT scan measurements of maxillary and frontal sinuses are thought to be useful for gender determination. The aim of this study is to compare the frontal sinus dimensions and to assess their reliability and accuracy for gender determination using a CT scan. Materials and Methods: A comparative study included cranial Computerized tomography (CT) of 40 patients aged between 18 and 65 years who underwent CT examination of the head and neck for other medical problems that are not related to the frontal sinus. The measurements of the frontal sinus were done in axial and scout images. Results: Our study showed that the maximum depth of frontal sinus in males and females was 10.76 ± 2.12 and 9.23 ± 1.85, respectively, which showed a statistically significant P value (<0.05). The thickness of the anterior wall for males and females was 5.27 ± 1.46 and 5.62 ± 1.60, respectively. There was no statistical significance with respect to the thickness of the anterior wall of the frontal sinus. The maximal anteroposterior length of frontal sinus measured from scout image for males and females were 12.35 ± 3.11 and 10.52 ± 2.15, respectively, which showed a statistically significant P < 0.05. The frontal sinus dimensions were correlated with age subgroups, and there is no statistical significance. Conclusion: We concluded that the dimensions of the frontal sinus could be used for gender dimorphism. This study also proposes the reliability and accuracy of frontal sinus; hence the study proves vital in identifying the gender of a person in forensic anthropology.