Sexual Dimorphism and Inter-Century Variability in Sella Turcica and Sphenoid Sinus Pneumatization: A Computed Tomography Study of the Romanian Population

Background/Objectives: Identification of unknown individuals is an essential part of Forensic Medicine. Recent anthropological research has demonstrated subtle but consistent sexual dimorphism in the sella turcica, while indicating comparatively limited population-specific differences in its size, shape, and contour. The aim of this paper is to analyze the variability and sexual dimorphism of the sphenoid bone and to determine if there are statistically significant correlations between the sella turcica dimensions and the degree of pneumatization of the sphenoid sinus. Materials and Methods: We analyzed five hundred random unenhanced CT examinations of human dry skulls from the “Francisc I. Rainer” Craniological Collection of the Human Anthropological Institute in Bucharest, Romania. The “Francisc I. Rainer” Craniological Collection is a modern osteological collection of almost 6800 skulls that have been collected and prepared by Prof. Rainer during the first half of the XXth century. Most of the specimens are of Romanian origin, prepared during the interwar period, and over 3000 adult skulls are of known sex and age. Consequently, 600 CT examinations of Romanian patients underwent cerebral CT in the University Emergency Hospital of Bucharest. The overall sample (dried skulls and the skulls of the contemporary living individuals) consisted of 1100 CT examinations of skulls, 619 males and 481 females, with ages between 19 and 93 years. Results: we identified statistically significant differences regarding the degree of pneumatization of the sphenoid sinus (SS) between the two groups as a whole, with the conchal and presellar types being more frequent in the dry skull group, and the sellar and postsellar types being more frequent in the patient group. When analyzing whether there were correlations between the degree of pneumatization of the SS and the diameters of the sella turcica (ST), we identified a weak, but statistically significant negative correlation between the sella turcica height (STH) and the postsellar pneumatization type. This suggests that the smaller sellar heights tend to be associated with the postsellar type of SS. Type III interclinoid osseous bridges were more frequent in the contemporary living patients’ group. Conclusions: Knowledge of such variability of the sphenoid bone holds great importance in Forensic Sciences, as it may aid in the process of identification of individuals or human remains.