A Three Dimensional Computed Tomography (3D-CT): A Study of Maxillary Sinus in Malays

Objective: To study the size of the maxillary sinus which includes linear and volume measurements. Methods: Three dimensional computed tomography (3D CT) images of 144 Malays (288 maxillary sinuses) with no clinical evidence of craniofacial and maxillary sinus abnormalities were selected. The subjects aged from 0.4 to 30 years (mean = 13.7 ; SD = 8.53), underwent the CT scanning using General Electric (GE) Light Speed Plus CT Scanner System (Wisconsin, USA) at the Radiology department, HUSM for reasons other than research purposes. The initial 2D formats were then reconstructed into 3D utilising OsiriX V3.7 (Geneva, Switzerland) software. Linear dimensions and volume of maxillary sinus were measured for different age categories and gender. Results: The maxillary sinus increased in sizes and volume from birth to 30 years of age. Females demonstrated to have significantly larger maxillary sinus width (p=0.02), height (p=0.04) and depth (p < 0.01) than males in 0-6 years age category. The maleʹs maxillary sinus width and height were significantly larger than females in 7-12 (p < 0.01) and 21-30 (p=0.02) years age categories. Moreover, maxillary sinus depth were found to be larger in males than females in 21-30 years age category (p < 0.01). Males also exhibited larger maxillary sinus volume than females in 7-12 (p < 0.01) and 21-30 (p < 0.01) years age categories. Conclusions: The maxillary sinus sizes and volume showed sexual dimorphism at most age categories. Gender consideration should be taken into account in clinical assessment and procedures which may affect the maxillary sinus.