Radiographic anthropometric study of frontal sinus for sex determination in Benin city, South-South Nigeria

CONTEXT: The frontal sinuses are situated in the frontal bone between the outer and inner plates of the bone. A good knowledge on dimensions is relevant for successful surgery. AIM: This study was carried out to determine the dimorphic potential of the frontal sinuses and to ascertain the accuracy in sex determination using the logistic regression model among Edo people of Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was a 7 years retrospective study on the Edo, utilizing posterior-anterior radiographs of frontal sinuses in University of Benin Teaching Hospital. The right and left frontal sinus heights and widths were measured in centimeter. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The data were analyzed using independent samples t-test and logistic regression with the aid of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20. P ≤0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: All dimensions were higher in males than in females, wherein the the left side height and width were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Left side frontal sinus width gave the highest accuracy of 60% in sex determination using logit regression. CONCLUSION: The dimorphic nature of the left dimensions has implications for human identification.