Association between sella turcica bridging and palatal canine impaction

Conclusions: Sella bridging isfrequently found in patients with impacted canines. Hence, sella bridging can complement other diagnosticparameters in confirming the status of canine impaction.

Methods: Orthodontic records comprising standard-quality lateralcephalograms and dental panoramic radiographs were selected. Thirty-one patients with palatally impactedcanines (20 female, 11 male; mean age, 18.4 ± 8.9 years) and 70 controls with erupted canines (35 male,35 female; mean age, 17.1 ± 7.5 years) were included in the study. Comparison of sella dimensionsbetween the patients and the controls was carried out by independent sample t tests, whereas theassociation of sella bridging with impacted canines was analyzed using the chi-square test.

Results: The frequenciesof complete and partial calcification of sella in the patients were 8 (25.8%) and 17 (54.8%), respectively,whereas those in the controls were 0 and 36 (51.4%), respectively. The frequency of sella bridging was significantlyhigher in subjects with canine impaction than in the controls (P < 0.001). The sagittal interclinoidal distancewas found to be significantly reduced in the patients (P 5 0.028). According to the statistical analysis,age and sex do not influence the dimensions and calcification of sella turcica.

Introduction: The association of sella turcica bridging and various dental anomalies has been an area of interestfor researchers. Based on the evidence of a common embryologic origin between sella turcica and the teeth, theobjectives of this study were to measure the dimensions of sella turcica and to test whether an association existsbetween sella bridging and impacted canines.