Where is sella turcica located

Verify now. Toggle navigation. Institutional subscriptions support Language. Keep me signed in. Forgot your password? Sign in with Facebook. Sign in with Apple. This definition incorporates text from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy 20th U. Subscribe now Discover our subscription plans Subscribe. The changes that take place in the size and shape of sella turcica during growth have been well-documented in the literature.

Deposition of bone on the anterior part of the interior surface of the sella turcica ceased at an early age, where as resorption on the distal part of the sella floor and on the posterior wall continued for a longer period of time.

Deposition of bone was seen on the tuberculum sellae and resorption at the posterior boundary of sella turcica up to years of age. The sella point is displaced backward and downward during growth and development. Data on the size of the sella turcica have been well-reported in the literature.

The size of sella turcica assessed from radiographs can be either linear or various methods of area and volume measurements. It typically ranges from 4 to 12 mm for the vertical and from 5 to 16 mm for the anteroposterior dimension. Any change in the size of the sella turcica is more frequently related to pathology, enlargement is the most frequent finding but is usually not accompanied by bone erosion. A microsurgical anatomical study on sphenoidal blocks from cadavers of different ages was performed by Quakinine and Hardy and found that the average transverse width of sella turcica was 12 mm, length was 8 mm, and the average height was 6 mm.

Axelsson et al. The depth and diameter in males and females were similar but the length was larger in males. Alkofide[ 1 ] studied the lateral cephalograms of Saudi subjects with an age range of years with different skeletal types. Linear dimensions of length, depth, and diameter of sella turcica was measured [ Figure 1 ]. It was found that there were no statistically significant differences between males and females in all the three linear dimensions.

When linear dimensions were compared with age, the size of sella turcica was larger in older age group than in the younger age group. According to Preston,[ 12 ] pituitary fossa increased in size with age and found a positive correlation of the area of the sella to age. After 26 years of age, no significant increase was observed on the size. Elster et al. Pituitary gland was mm in females while in males it was 7 mm, both being larger than in childhood or young adult hood.

They also concluded that young adults had slightly but significantly smaller glands than adolescents of the same gender. The dimensional changes in the sella turcica had a significant positive linear trend to length, depth, and diameter until 25 years of age. After 26 years of age, no significant increase was found in sella turcica dimensions. The most common causes of enlargement of sella turcica are the presence of intrasellar adenomas e.

Morphological appearance of sella turcica is established in early embryonic structure. Variations in the shape of sella urcica have long been reported by many researchers. The shape of sella turcica was classified in to circular, oval, and flattened or saucer-shaped and majority of the subjects had either a circular or oval shaped sella.

Other classifications were based on the contours of the sella floor, the angles formed by the contours of anterior and posterior clinoid processes and tuberculum sellae and the fusion of both clinoid processes as sella turcica bridge. He concluded that sella turcica bridge was evident as early as 6 years of age. Different morphological types of sella turcica: a Normal sella turcica, b oblique anterior wall, c double contour of the floor, d irregularity notching in the posterior part of sella turcica, e sella turcica bridge, f pyramidal shape of dorsum sellae.

Literature indicates the occurrence of sella turcica bridge as a radiographic feature in basal cell carcinoma, Reigers syndrome. Kjaer et al. Meyer-Marcotty et al. They concluded that these abnormal features could be primary indicators for diagnosis of Axenfeld-Rieger syndrome.

Variations in the shape of sella turcica can be misleading since it may be present in normal subjects and in medically compromised conditions such as in spina bifida. Anatomical and radiographic studies showed that the occurrence of sella turcica bridging ranges from 5. Jones et al. When different skeletal classes were analyzed for bridging, Abdel Kaber studied the prevalence of a sella turcica bridge in relation to the three skeletal classes in Saudi subjects and found a higher percentage of sella turcica bridges in orthognathic-surgical patients with a skeletal class III malocclusion Marsan and Oztas[ 32 ] studied the incidence of bridging in 61 skeletal class III Turkish adult females and compared with 57 skeletal class I females.

Irregularity in the dorsum sella was found in He concluded that bridging occurs more frequently in subjects with craniofacial deviations compared to normal subjects.

Intracranial calcifications occurring in subjects with various dental anomalies are highly suggestive of a genetic etiology underlying both these conditions. Leonardi et al.

Complete calcification of interclinoid ligament was present in Partial calcification of the interclinoid ligament was seen in They concluded that early appearance of sella turcica bridges during development should alert the clinicians to possible tooth anomalies in life later. An association between sella turcica bridging and dental transposition was also studied by Leonardi et al.

The linear dimensions of sella turcica can be used to approximate the pituitary gland size. The orthodontist should be familiar with different morphologies of the sella turcica to differentiate normal from abnormal appearance. Lateral cephalograms can be suggested for children, if there is a family history of impacted teeth, signs of ectopic eruption, and other dental anomalies so that treatment can be diagnosed and treated early.

Source of Support: Nil. Conflict of Interest: None declared. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Dent Res J Isfahan. Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Address for correspondence: Dr. E-mail: ni. Received Mar; Accepted May. Unable to process the form. Check for errors and try again.

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