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Discovering Middle Ear Anatomy by Transcanal Endoscopic Ear Surgery: A Dissection Manual
Published on: January 11, 2018
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"The Accessory Ethmoidal Canal Does Not Necessarily Contain an Arterial Structure".
Juan Ramón Gras-Cabrerizo1, Maria Martel-Martin2, Juan Carlos Villatoro-Sologaistoa3
1Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, 16689Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, 536250Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and Corachán Clinic, Spain.
Ear, Nose, & Throat Journal
|October 20, 2021
Summary
Accessory ethmoidal arteries were found in 12% of cadaver dissections. Their presence may correlate with the absence of the posterior ethmoidal artery, suggesting canals don't always contain vessels.
Area of Science:
- Anatomy
- Surgical Anatomy
- Vascular Anatomy
Background:
- The anterior and posterior ethmoidal arteries are crucial vascular structures in the nasal cavity.
- Understanding variations in ethmoidal artery anatomy is important for endoscopic sinus surgery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of the accessory ethmoidal artery (AcEA) using endonasal endoscopic cadaver dissections.
- To identify the intraorbital origin of the AcEA.
Main Methods:
- Performed 34 endonasal dissections on 17 adult cadaveric heads.
- Conducted complete ethmoidectomy to identify ethmoidal canals and their contents.
- Removed bony canals and lamina papiracea to verify vascular and neural structures.
Main Results:
- Anterior ethmoidal canal (AEC) and posterior ethmoidal canal (PEC) were present in 100% of dissections.
- Accessory ethmoidal canals (AcEC) were identified in 12% (4/34) of nasal fossae.
- AcECs contained arteries in 6% of cases, neural structures in one, and were empty in another. PECs lacked vessels in 2 cases.
Conclusions:
- The presence of an ethmoidal canal does not guarantee an arterial vessel within it.
- Accessory ethmoidal arteries may be associated with the absence of the posterior ethmoidal artery.
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