Radio-Anatomical Evaluation of Nasal Septal Deviation Amongst Nigerians Using Computed Tomography Scan

Background: The nasal cavity forms the upper aspect of the respiratory tract, divided into two by a nasal septum. The nasal septum provides support for the nasal cavity and is composed of a bony and cartilaginous parts. According to side, Nasal septal deviation (NSD) can be classified as right-sided, left-sided or S-shaped variants (Cellina, et al., 2020). Aim: To evaluate the nasal septal angle deviation amongst Nigerians. Materials and Method: This study was a descriptive cross sectional retrospective study conducted in the Radiology department of the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital (RSUTH), Nigeria between 2022-2024. The measurement of the nasal septal angle was done by measuring the angle between two lines. The first line runs from the maxillary crest (point A) to the junction point of the perpendicular and cribriform plate of ethmoid bone (point B). The second line was drawn to connect the junction point of the perpendicular and cribriform plate and the most prominent point of the deviated nasal septum (point C), Gisma et al., 2022. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22.0 and were represented in charts, frequencies and percentages. Results: In this study, males were observed to have more deviated nasal septum. This was similar to previous study done by Gisma, et al., 2022, Madani et al., 2022. This was in contrast to the results of Smith et al, (2010), who revealed that NSD was more prevalent in females. Furthermore, Bora et al., (2021), and Shrestha et al., (2019) found that there was no statistical difference between frequencies of septal deviation in both genders. Moreso, varying prevalence of NSD have been reported amongst different population, this may be due to dissimilarities in the criteria used to assess nasal septum deviation and also the population of study. Conclusion: Information as regards the presence of nasal septal deviation is very essential because it will help surgeons especially E.N.T surgeon carry out safe and effici