Anatomical Changes Related to Age in Maxillary Sinus

Objective: The paranasal sinuses consist of four paired cavities: maxillary, ethmoid, frontal, and sphenoid, which are air-filled, mucosa-lined spaces within the maxillofacial region, connected to the nasal cavity. The maxillary sinus, the largest of these, occupies the body of the maxilla and has a pyramidal shape. Methods: In this study, CBCT scans from 35 subjects (18 males and 17 females) who visited the University Dental Hospital in Tikrit and a private CBCT center in Samarra were analyzed. Subjects were categorized into four groups (A, B, C, and D). Measurements focused on determining the dimensions of the right maxillary sinus, including height (distance from the superior wall to the inferior wall in the coronal plane), width (distance from the lateral to the medial wall), and depth (antero-posterior distance in the axial plane). Mean values for each dimension were calculated. Results: The study results revealed that the length and height of the right maxillary sinus (RMS) increased up to Group C and then began to decline in Group D. Male subjects showed larger sinus dimensions compared to females. In females, the maxillary sinus length and height were variable across Groups A and B, with an increase in Group C followed by a decrease in Group D, while width showed an initial fill in Group A and then a gradual decline through Groups B, C, and D. In males, length, width, and height of the sinus increased in Groups A and B, peaked in Group C, and declined in Group D.