Morphometric Analysis of the Hard Palate and Its Association with Maxillary Sinus Volume: A Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) Study

Background: The hard palate, a crucial component of the human skull, divides the nasal and oral chambers. because of the close proximity of the palate to the maxillary sinus, The dimensions of the hard palate and maxillary sinus could be correlated because of their close proximity. This study aims to identify the correlation between the morphology and dimensions of the hard palate with maxillary sinus volume using CBCT. Objective: To investigate the relationship between the dimensions of the hard palate and maxillary sinus volume in males and females using length, breadth, height of the palate, palatine index, and palatine height index. Methods: The study used 100 CBCT scans. Palate length, width and height and palatine index were measured in CBCT sections. The volume of the maxillary sinuses were measured using ITK SNAP software. All the values obtained were subjected to a statistical analysis and were analyzed using the Pearson correlation test and Binary logistic regression analysis. Results: The mean values of the linear palatal parameters were higher in males than in females; the most common type of palate was leptostaphyline and orthostaphyline. Palatal length and maxillary sinus volume had the highest correlation ( P value = 0.006). The gender prediction accuracy was 68% in males and 72% in females. Conclusion: The morphologies of the palate and maxillary sinus showed a moderate correlation and hence a careful assessment is required during surgical procedures in these regions.