Morphometry of Sella Turcica, Anterior Clinoid Process and Carotico-clinoid Foramen among North Indian Population: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction: Sella Turcica (ST), a complex bony landmark located on the body of sphenoid bone. Its lateral bony wall mainly consists of anterior and posterior clinoid processes and optic strut which bear a strong relationship with pituitary fossa. Aim: To estimate various morphometric parameters of ST, Anterior Clinoid Process (ACP) with its anatomical variations, Optic Strut (OS) and Carotico-clinoid Foramen (CCF) among North Indian population group. Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional anatomical study was conducted on 30 adult dry fully ossified skull and 10 formalin fixed adult cadaveric cranial base present in the Department of Anatomy, SGT University Gurugram, Haryana, India, over a period of one year from January 2021 to December 2021 to evaluate various morphometric parameters such as anteroposterior, transverse diameter and depth of sellar region including ACPs with various bony distances. The range, mean and standard deviation of each parameters were measured by using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) latest version (version 21.0) and Student’s t-test was applied for bilateral comparison. Frequency of morphological variability of CCF was calculated in percentages. Results: Among the 40 samples (both dry skull base and cadaveric skulls) the average dimensions of ST were 10.03±2.40 mm, 13.65±2.09 mm and 5.74±1.92 mm as anteroposterior, transverse and depth, respectively. The length, width and thickness of ACP were 11.22±1.74 mm, 8.04±1.73 mm and 2.27±0.70 mm, respectively. Also the length and width of OS were 3.61±0.78 mm and 3.72±0.47 mm, respectively. Significant difference was observed for distance of ACP to OS. The frequency of CCF was 10 (25%) among the total samples both bilateral and unilateral; out of which 8 (80%) of the samples presented with incomplete foramen, 1 (10%) presented contact type of CCF, and 1 (10%) of the samples exhibited a complete variety of CCF. Conclusion: Bilateral significant difference was observed for the transverse diameter. The mean value for length of ACP was found significant. Detailed morphometry and morphological variations of structures present in sellar region is mandatory for the clinicians specially neurosurgeons and radiologist for the diagnosis and to decide the modality of treatment.