JOURNAL OF CRANIOFACIAL SURGERY, vol.29, no.3, pp.792-795, 2018 (SCI-Expanded)
Objective:To compare whether there are any differences between the 3 methods used for measure area of foramen magnum (FM) in skulls.Methods:The FMs of 150 skulls were examined. Antero-posterior diameter, transverse diameter were measured using by Vernier caliper. The area of the FM was calculated by using 2 different formulas as described previously by Radinsky and Teixeira.The authors also applied stereological assessment method for estimating the surface area of FMs. The area was calculated 3 times manually using stereological point grid system for each skull.The authors compared the mean surface area of FMs obtained from each of these 3 methods estimating surface area of FMs whether there were any significant differences in between their results.Results:The mean areas of the FMs estimated according to Teixeria formula, Radinsky formula, and Cavalieri stereological method were respectively as follows: 790.4799.86mm(2), 783.66 +/- 99.34mm(2), and 748.06 +/- 100.19mm(2). The authors observed significant differences (P<0.05) in between the mean surface areas of FMs obtained from each of these 3 methods used for estimating the area.Conclusion:There were significant differences (P<0.05) in between the mean surface areas of FMs obtained from each of these 3 methods used for estimating the area.