CT scan findings of occult sinus pathology in asymptomatic individuals

One hundred-fourteen computed tomographic(CT) scans of the skull region were revised for occult sinus pathology in asymptomatic individuals. The scans were conducted to investigate other skull regions. None of the patients had nasal or sinus symptoms. Twenty-nine percent of the ethmoid sinuses had occult pathology mostly in the form of thickened mucous membrane. Occult pathology occurred in 14% of maxillary sinuses, 4.8% of the frontal sinuses, and 4.6% of the sphenoid sinuses. As ethmoids carry a high incidence for possible occult pathology, isolated clouding of the ethmoids in CT scans should not be regarded as a cause for patients' symptoms in headache investigation.