ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: As the anterior ethmoid canal (AEC) provides a good surgical landmark and its injury may result in serious complications, the anatomical relationship of the AEC to the anterior skull base (ASB) should be evaluated preoperatively. Despite some studies on the ASB, studies analyzing this anatomical relationship and the types of the fovea ethmoidalis (FE) on computed tomography (CT) are rare. The aim of this study is to better understand this anatomical relationship by determining the frequency of each type of the FE and distances between anatomical structures on the CT scans with our new classification. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Four hundred sides of the FE were analyzed from the preoperative coronal CT scans of 200 chronic sinusitis patients (100 males and 100 females, aged 20 to 59 years). The FE was classified into 4 types (I: non-separated type, II: partially separated type, III: completely separated type, IV: unidentifiable type) and 2 subtypes (A: developed medial cranial wall, B: undeveloped medial cranial wall). Heights of the medial cranial wall (a), the AEC (b), and the ethmoid roof (c) were measured on the CT image. RESULTS: Frequencies of the types I-IV were 48.0% (IA: 25.2%, IB: 22.8%), 19.3% (IIA: 4.3%, IIB: 15.0%), 29.5% (IIIA: 29.5%, IIIB: 0%), and 3.2%, respectively. The medial cranial wall of type IIIA was significantly longer than those of the other types, and the AEC of type IIIA was in a significantly lower position than those of the other types. CONCLUSION: On the CT scans, we found the AEC in 96.8% and type IIIA in nearly 30% of all types of the FE. Sinus surgery should be performed only after preoperative evaluation of these anatomical relationship on the CT scans under close scrutiny. For the type IIIA, surgery should be performed with utmost care due to high risk of injury to the AEC and the medial cranial wall.
Subject(s)
Female , Humans , Male , Classification , Sinusitis , Skull Base , Skull , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Standard polysomnography is generally used in the diagnosis of sleep apnea syndrome. However, this technique is laborious, costly and inconvenient as a screening test or a test for epidemiological study. A simple screening test for sleep apnea, administered at home, would provide physicians with a convenient and less costly means of evaluating possible sleep apnea. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity of portable sleep monitoring devices. The validity of measurements made by the portable sleep monitoring devices was assessed by comparing respiratory parameters obtained using the portable sleep monitoring devices with those obtained using standard polysomnography. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Eighteen patients were collected and divided into two groups. Direct comparison was made between data obtained by the portable monitoring devices(MESAM IV in group 1 and Edentec in group 2) and data simultaneously obtained by standard polysomnographic techniques. RESULTS: In group 1, oxygen desaturation index(ODI) and heart variation index(HVI) in MESAM IV were significantly correlated with apnea index(AI) and respiratory disturbance index(RDI) in standard polysomnography. In group 2, AI and RDI in Edentec were significantly correlated with those in standard polysomnography. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that portable monitoring devices(MESAM IV and Edentec) may be useful in screening test of sleep apnea syndrome.