Season, Age and Sex-Related Differences in Incidental Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings of Paranasal Sinuses in Adults

Özet

Objective: The purpose of the current study was toinvestigate the prevalence of incidental paranasal sinus abnormalities on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We also aimed to assess the season, theage and sex-related differences in the frequencies ofthese abnormalities.Methods: Paranasal sinus cavities of 839 patients whounderwent brain MRI for suspected intracranial pathology were retrospectively evaluated for the presenceof incidental abnormalities. Two study groups wereestablished according to the season in which the MRIexaminations were performed, and the prevalences ofthe incidental sinusal abnormalities in both winter andsummer were calculated. The relation of the incidentalsinusal abnormalities to age and sex were also analyzed.Results: Of the 839 patients, 45.5% showed one ormore sinusal abnormalities. The prevalence of the sinusal abnormalities was significantly higher in winter(50.6%) than in summer (40.3%) (p=0.003). Whilesphenoidal sinus lesions did not show significant seasonality (p>0.05), frontal, maxillary and ethmoidal sinus lesions were significantly more common in winterthan in summer (p 0.05).Conclusion: Paranasal sinus abnormality is a frequentincidental brain MRI finding which is more commonlydetected in winter. Awareness of incidental paranasal sinus abnormalities and knowledge of its frequency contribute positively to clinical applications.