Roentgenologic Examination of the Nasal Accessory Sinuses in Infants and Children

Abstract

IN the newborn, one sees well formed maxillary sinuses and a varying number of ethmoid cells. Seldom are the frontal and sphenoid sinuses materially developed at birth, or in early infancy. During infancy and early childhood, one sees the early development of the frontal sinuses into the vertical and horizontal plates of the frontal bone, from the ethmoid cells. The sphenoids are also noted then, developing first in the anterior part of the body of the sphenoid bone. One expects to see well developed frontal sinuses at the age of four or five years, and a well developed sphenoid at a slightly later age. The presence of an infection in the ethmoid cells and the maxillary sinuses may materially retard the development of the frontal and sphenoid sinuses. A certain percentage of adults have no frontal sinus development into the vertical plate, while others have only one frontal sinus. There are many variations in size, shape, and position of the sinuses, calling for individual interpretation in most instances...