Radiologic Investigation of the Presence of Accessory Transverse Foramen in Individuals Aged 21-60 Years Living in the Western Black Sea Region

Aim: The aim of this study was to radiologically evaluate the occurrence of more than one for. transversarium, called accessory foramen transversarium (ATF), in individuals aged 21-60 years living in the Western Black Sea Region. Material and Methods: Personal information (name, last name and age) of the patients who participated in the study were not shared and confidentiality was taken as a basis. In the study, cervical vertebrae of 200 healthy individuals, 100 females and 100 males aged 21-60 years, were obtained retrospectively by Computed Tomography (CT) through the Hospital Imaging Archiving System (PACS). The for. transversarium of all cervical vertebrae from C1 to C7 were examined on coronal and sagittal plane images brought to orthogonal plane. The presence or absence of variation was examined. The vertebrae with ATF were noted. It was noted whether the ATF was unilateral or bilateral in the vertebra where it was found. If it was unilateral, which side it was on was noted. After all CT images were examined, the data obtained were entered into the Microsoft Excel program. It was analyzed with SPSS 24.0 program. Results: The according to the analysis results, ATF was observed in a total of 95 individuals, 49 males (49%) and 46 females (46%). 18 individuals (18.9%) had right-sided ATF, 46 individuals (48.4%) had left-sided ATF and 31 individuals (32.6%) had bilateral ATF. There was no statistically significant difference between gender and ATF (p>0.05). ATF was observed in a total of 121 vertebrae out of 1400 vertebrae examined. C6 was the most common vertebra with ATF in both sexes. Conclusion: We believe that our study will provide guidance for clinicians and radiologists in predicting changes in the structures passing through the foramen (for.) transversarium, interpreting X-ray and CT scans, and determining the more appropriate intervention when surgical intervention is considered.