Assessment of Maxillary Sinus Septa Using Cone Beam Computed Tomography: A Retrospective Clinical Study

Aim:

The present study was undertaken to evaluate the prevalence, height and location of maxillary sinus septa in patients with a dentate and an edentulous maxilla using cone beam computed tomography imaging.

Patients and Methods:

This descriptive study was conducted on a retrospective evaluation of cone beam computed tomography images of 1322 maxillary sinus with 661 subjects from January 2016 to February 2018. The study consisted of 1322 maxillary sinuses: 1092 from patients with a dentate and 230 from patients with an edentulous maxilla.

Results:

The mean age of the 661 patients (373 women, 288 men) was 42.1 ± 18.2 years. A total of 468 (35.4%) septa was recorded in 1322 maxillary sinuses  with a mean height was 7.95 ± 4.03 mm. Of 468 sinus septa, the majority was located in the posterior region of the maxillary sinus. Of these, 121 (25.8%) were in the anterior, 140 (29.9%) were in the middle and 207 (44.2%) were in the posterior region.

Regarding the status of the dentition in the maxilla in relation to the distribution of sinus septa, septa were present in 387 (35.4%) dentate and in 81 (35.2%) edentulous regions.

Conclusion:

The prevalence of septa is high in all parts of the maxillary sinus. For this reason, comprehensive evaluation should be performed with an appropriate radiographic technique to prevent possible complications during sinus surgery.