[Relationship between anatomic variations of nasal sinus and chronic sinusitis]

To understand the etiology of chronic sinusitis.

Ninety-one coronal CT scans of chronic sinusitis were analysed with mutimedia software developed by the authors. Sinus CT images were scanned into multimedia computer and the subtle anatomic structures such as pneumatization of the middle turbinate, agger nasi cell, Haller's cell, septal deformity, maxillary sinus hypoplasia, abnormality of uncinate process and ethmoid bulla and so on were measured. The results were analysed by the statistical software SPSS.

The penumatization rate of total or inferior part of middle turbinate correlated positively to the inflammation of anterior ethmoid and maxillary sinuses. Compared with patients with normal frontal sinuses, the vertical diameters of agger nasi cells of patients with frontal sinusitis were larger(11.70 +/- 5.50 mm and 8.54 +/- 3.67 mm respectively, P < 0.01). Compared with patients with normal maxillary sinuses, the Haller's cells of patients with maxillary sinusitis were larger (77.8% and 33.3%, P < 0.05) and the amount of inflammatory Haller's cells of the latter was more abundant than that of the former(91.6 +/- 17.8 mm2 and 41.6 +/- 12.6 mm2, respectively, P < 0.05). The deviation of uncinate process was one of the factors of maxillary sinusitis. The sizes of ethmoid bullae increased with the soft tissue thickening in anterior ethmoid sinus, the large ethmoid bulla may cause anterior ethmoid sinusitis.

Some anatomic variations may play a role in chronic sinusitis.