Table 5.
Comparison of selected parameters from the 25 studiesa included in the systematic review
| Study | Population (number of samples) | Type of investigation and sample characteristics | GPF opening direction (%) | GPF dimensions (mm) | Mean GPC length (mm) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I-A-M | I-A-L | Anterior | Vertical | AP | LM | |||||
| Tomaszewska et al. (2014) (this study) | Polish (n = 1500) | Sinus CT scans; mean age 42.1 ± 16.9; total: 717 M, 783 F | 82.1 | 4.0 | 7.6 | 5.3 | 5.0 (0.4) | 2.9 (0.7) | 31.1 (2.9)b; range 15–44 | |
| Nimigean et al. (2013) | Romanian (n = 100) | Dry human skulls; age range 25–40; sexed | 82.0 | – | 13.0 | 5.0 | 4.9 (0.9) | 3.0 (0.9) | – | |
| Piagkou et al. (2012) | Greek (n = 71) | Dry human skulls; adult; unsexed | – | – | – | – | 5.3 (0.9) | 2.7 (0.5) | – | |
| Howard-Swirzinski et al. ( 2010) | American (n = 500) | CBCT scans; age range 18–73; total: 235 M, 265 F | – | – | – | – | – | – | 29.0 (3.0)b; range 22–40 | |
| McKinney et al. (2010) | American (n = 10) | Maxillofacial CT scans; age range 18–64; unsexed | – | – | – | – | – | – | 40.4 (1.9)b | |
| Das et al. (2006) | American (n = 100) | Sinus HRCT scans; adult; total: 50 M, 50 F | – | – | – | – | – | – |
SPF-GPF distance: M: 28 ± 2 range 27–29; F: 27 ± 2 range 25–29 |
|
| Osunwoke et al. (2011) | Nigerian (n = 150) | Dry human skulls; adult; sexed (100 % M) | – | – | – | – | – | 15.0 (2.1) | – | |
| Ajmani (1994) | Nigerian (n = 65) | Dry human skulls; adult, unsexed | 58.7 | 38.7 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| Hassanali and Mwaniki (1984) | Kenyan (n = 125) | Dry human skulls; adult; total: 60 M, 22 F, 43 unsexed | 74.0 | – | – | 26 | – | – | – | |
| Langenegger et al. (1983) | South African (n = 100) | Dry human skulls; mean age 42.7; total: 50 M, 50 F | – | – | – | – | – | 2.5 (0.5) | – | |
| Hwang et al. (2011) | Korean (n = 50) | Head HRCT scans; mean age 51.0; total: 22 M, 28 F | – | – | – | – | 4.5 (0.7) | 2.2 (0.4) | 34.8 (2.7)b; range 22.6–48.5 | |
| Klosek and Rungruang (2009) | Thai (n = 41) | Human cadavers; mean age 71.2; total: 24 M, 17 F | – | – | – | – | F: 5.1 (1.0) M: 4.9 (8.3) | F: 2.8 (1.0) M: 2.6 (8.3) | – | |
| 3.25a (0.5) | ||||||||||
| Methathrathip et al. (2005) | Thai (n = 160) | Dry human skulls (n = 105) – mean age 48.1; total: 68 M, 37 F; human cadavers (n = 55) | – | – | – | 97.6 | 4.9 (0.9) | 2.7 (0.5) | M: 30.0 (4.3) range 16.3–40.9; F: 27 ± 2 range 25–29 | |
| 29.7 (4.2)b; range 16.3–40.9 | ||||||||||
| Wang et al. (1988) | Chinese (Taiwan) (n = 100) | Dry human skulls; adult; sexed | – | – | 90.0 | 10.0 | – | |||
| Ikuta et al. (2013) | Brazilian (n = 50) | CBCT scans; mean age 35.8; total: 27 M, 23 F | – | – | – | – | 3.1a (0.5) | – | ||
| Chrcanovic and Custódio (2010) | Brazilian (n = 80) | Dry human skulls; age unknown; unsexed | 18.8 | 0.0 | 69.4 | 11.9 | – | – | – | |
| Dave et al. (2013) | Indian (W) (n = 100) | Dry human skulls; adult; total: 60 M, 39 F, 1 U | – | – | 4.0 | 96.0 | – | – | – | |
| Sharma and Garud (2013) | Indian (W) (n = 100) | Dry human skulls; adult; unsexed | 49.5 | 3.5 | 2.0 | 45.0 | 4.7 (1.1) | 3.25b (0.5) | – | |
| Kumar et al. (2011) | Indian (N) (n = 100) | Dry human skulls; adult; unsexed | 19.0 | 73.0 | 1.0 | 7.0 | – | – | – | |
| Saralaya and Nayak (2007) | Indian (SW) (n = 132) | Dry human skulls; adult; unsexed | 46.2 | 12.5 | 41.3 | – | – | – | – | |
| Ajmani (1994) | Indian (N) (n = 34) | Dry human skulls; adult, unsexed | 91.4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| Westmoreland and Blanton (1982) | Indian (E) (n = 300) | Dry human skulls; adult; unsexed | – | – | 18.0 | 82.0 | – | – | – | |
| Sheikhi et al. (2013) | Iranian (n = 138) | CBCT scans; age range 18–76; total: 73 M, 65 F | – | – | – | – | – | – | Right-side M: 32.7 (2.5) F: 30.5 (1.7); Left-side M: 33.2 (2.3) F: 30.6 (1.7) | |
| 31.8 (1.4)b | ||||||||||
| Douglas and Wormald (2006) | Australian (n = 21) | Head CT scans; formalin fixed cadavers; mean age 81 ± 8.9; total: 13 M, 8 F | – | – | – | – | – | – | 40.1b; range 38.6–41.6 | |
| Jaffar and Hamadah (2003) | Caucasian (Iraqi) (n = 50) | Dry human skulls; adult; unsexed | 60.0 | – | 36.0 | 4.0 | 4.6 (1.0) | 2.8 (0.6) | – | |
| Malamed and Trieger (1983) | Mixed (n = 204) | Dry human skulls; adult; unsexed | – | – | 38.7 | 61.3 | – | – | – | |
Data are presented as the mean, with the SD in parenthesis where appropriate
CT Computed tomography, CBCT, cone beam CT, HRCT high-resolution computed tomography, M male, F female, I-A-M inferiorly antero-medially, I-A-L inferiorly antero-laterally, SPF sphenopalatine foramen, N north, S south, E east, W west
This table presents the data from 25 studies (24 identified in the literature search and the present study) containing relevant measurements. The study population from the work of Ajmani (1994) has been divided in two, as the study analyses two different populations (African and Indian) (hence the 26 studies in the table)
aGPF diameter
bTotal