Magnitude and Seasonal variation of Incidental Paranasal Sinus Abnormalities in Adults Undergoing Head Computed Tomography in St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College

Abstract

Abstract Background: - The paranasal sinuses are air filled cavities which are extensions of the nasal cavities. Various pathological processes affect these structures but inflammatory conditions are the commonest. Even in asymptomatic patients who undergo brain imaging for other indications show one or more incidental abnormalities in their sinuses. Morphological changes in the paranasal sinuses are regularly noted on Imaging, but little is known about the incidence and significance of these changes such abnormalities are a concern if they are over reported.(1) Objective:- The purpose of this study is to classify the morphological changes in the paranasal sinuses seen on Computed tomography and to investigate the magnitude, site and type of paranasal abnormalities and asses seasonal variation of the abnormalities with Ethiopian context. Materials and method: - A retrospective cross-sectional study is conducted by collecting soft copies of Brain Computed Tomography scan Images from Picture archiving and communications system of St. Paul’s hospital millennium medical college and jointly evaluated with the investigator and advising senior neuroradiologist at the radiology department of St. Paul’s hospital millennium medical college and data was entered and analyzed using SPSS version 26. Descriptive statics was used and ninety-five percent confidence intervals are computed to assess the presence and degree of association between variables Result: - Incidental Paranasal abnormalities are more commonly detected in Men and are most commonly seen kiremt or summer season of Ethiopia followed by Belg or autumn Ethiopian season and least involved season is Bega or winter season of Ethiopia. Out of these the most common involvement is seen in age group of 35 to 45 with median age of 44 years in all seasons, Most commonly involved paranasal sinus is maxillary sinus followed by ethmoid sinus, and frontal sinus and sphenoid sinus, Mucoperiosteal thickening is the most common category of abnormality in all paranasal sinuses, and bone destruction being the least common abnormality detected. Paranasal sinus abnormality is a frequent incidental head Computed Tomography scan finding that is more commonly detected in kiremt or summer Ethiopian season. Regardless of the season, incidental paranasal sinus abnormality is more commonly found in men compared to women. Awareness of incidental paranasal sinus abnormality and knowledge of its frequency contribute positively to clinical applications