Evaluation of the relationship between the shape and size of sella turcica and skeletal malocclusion in lateral cephalometric radiography

Abstract Introduction: The size and shape of sella turcica might be affected by pathological conditions. Clinicians should be familiar with the normal radiographic anatomy and morphologic variations of this area. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the shape and size of the sella turcica in subjects over 18 years of age with different skeletal malocclusions.Materials and methods: In this descriptive-analytical study, at first pre-treatment lateral cephalograms of 246 patients (over 18 years of age) were divided equally into three groups of skeletal malocclusions of class I, II and III (82 patients in each group), with equal distribution of male and female subjects in each group. Then, the shape of sella turcica was determined according to standard references and its size was calculated using a software program. Data were analyzed with one-way ANOVA, chi-squared test and independent t-test using SPSS 18 (α=0.05).Results: The majority of subjects (57.7%) had normal sella turcica shape. There were no significant differences in the shape (p value = 0.515) and size of sella turcica between the three skeletal malocclusions (p values of length, depth and diameter were 0.577, 0.881 and 0.575, respectively) and between genders (p values of shape, length, depth and diameter were 0.274, 0.22, 0.113 and 0.694, respectively).Conclusion: Under the limitations of the present study, there was no relationship between the shape and size of sella turcica and different skeletal malocclusions and gender of subjects over 18 years of age. Key words: Cephalometry, Malocclusion, Radiography, Sella turcica