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Piriform aperture (Master thesis)

Βίτσα, Δέσποινα/ Vitsa, Despoina

Piriform aperture is an anatomical formation that lies in the center of the face. It contributes to the formation of the nasal valve and its area corresponds to the area with the greatest resistance to air flow. Purpose: The study and accurate knowledge of the dimensions of the piriform aperture is considered extremely important, especially for surgeons operating in the area, such as otolaryngologists, plastic surgeons, maxillofacial surgeons. Also in the Forensics and Anthropology sections where the piriform sinus is of crucial importance for the recognition of the sex, age and nationality of each person MATERIAL AND METHODS: A review of the literature was conducted, with a study of scientific articles in the databases PubMed/Medline, Embase, Google Scholar and Cochrane Database/Library mainly in the English literature. 355 articles were reviewed, of which 290 were rejected because they did not have the full article or appeared twice. The keywords used were piriform aperture, piriform aperture dimensions, piriform aperture and nasal valve, rhinoplasty - piriform aperture, congenital piriform aperture stenosis). RESULTS: despite the fact that there is no systematic method commonly accepted by researchers to measure the dimensions of the piriform aperture, from the systematic review of the literature it was found that the dimensions of the piriform aperture are larger in men than in women, that the size increases with age, and that morphological differences are observed according to ethnicity. A Turkish researcher classified the shape of the piriform aperture into 8 types based on his measurements on dry skulls. Also of interest is the finding by a researcher of the existence of a network of connective tissue that covers the opioid orifice up to the anterior nasal tip. Some measurements were also carried out in children with the aim of determining the normal size of the aperture for the child's age and to easily make the differential diagnosis between congenital narrowing of the piriform aperture and choanal atresia and atresia life-threatening conditions due to its nature of a newborn who breathes obligatorily through the nose. Congenital stenosis of the piriform aperture is a life-threatening condition that requires prompt treatment. CONCLUSION: more studies are needed to systematically study the piriform aperture and its contribution to the anatomical and physiological function of the nose.