Radiologic analysis of correlations between sinonasal anatomical variations in patients with nasal septal deviation

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to analyze the sinonasal anatomical variations accompanying the nasal septal deviation, the correlations between these variations, and their relationship with the septal deviation angle.Methods: In this retrospective study, preoperative paranasal computed tomography (CT) scans of 206 patients who underwent septoplasty between January 2015 and December 2019 were examined. In CT scans, different nasal septal deviation types, Keros classification, optic nerve type, ethmoid air cell variants, nasal concha variants, paranasal sinus pneumatization variants, and the correlation between accessory pneumatization variants and their relationship with the septal deviation angle were analyzed.Results: In patients with nasal septal deviation, supraorbital ethmoid cell, anterior clinoid process pneumatization and onodi cell were more frequent compared to the literature. Any significant correlation between the nasal septal deviation angle and the presence of sinonasal variants was not detected (p > 0.05). Correlations were significant between the presence of Frontal sinus hypoplasia and Haller cell (ϕ = -0.142, p = 0.042), Supraorbital Ethmoid cell (ϕ = -0.173, p = 0.013) and Paradoxal middle concha (ϕ = 0.152, p = 0.029).Conclusion: Careful examination of paranasal CTs before craniomaxillofacial surgeries is important to determine sinonasal anatomic variants, to determine the appropriate treatment plan and to prevent possible complications peroperatively.