Ethmoidal air cells
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View Maxime St-Amant's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Tariq Walizai had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Tariq Walizai's current disclosures- Ethmoidal air cell
- Ethmoidal sinuses
- Ethmoid sinuses
- Ethmoid air cells
- Ethmoid air cell
The ethmoidal air cells, also known less commonly as the ethmoidal sinuses, form one of the four pairs of paranasal sinuses. They are located within the single, midline ethmoid bone.
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Summary
location: between the orbit and the nasal cavity, within the ethmoid labyrinth of the ethmoid bone
blood supply: supraorbital, anterior and posterior ethmoidal and sphenopalatine arteries
innervation: anterior and posterior ethmoidal and supraorbital nerves
Gross anatomy
A collection of air cells (3-18 in number) separated by bony septa within each side of the lateral mass, or labyrinth, of the ethmoid bone.
They are separated into anterior and posterior groups by the basal lamella, the lateral attachment of the middle turbinate to the lamina papyracea. Historically the ethmoid sinuses were subdivided into 3 groups of air cells: the anterior, middle and posterior ethmoidal air cells. The middle group are now incorporated into the anterior group.
The anterior ethmoidal air cells drain to the hiatus semilunaris and middle meatus via the ethmoid bulla, which forms parts of the ostiomeatal complex. The posterior ethmoidal air cells drain to the superior meatus via the sphenoethmoidal recess 2.
Some of the ethmoidal air cells have been given specific names, because of their importance in surgical procedures or involvement in head and neck pathologies:
frontal recess cells, including the agger nasi cells
Arterial supply
From the ophthalmic branch of the internal carotid artery, the supraorbital, anterior and posterior ethmoidal arteries supply the ethmoid air cells with the sphenopalatine artery (a branch of the maxillary artery) also contributing. Thus, the ethmoid air cells are supplied by branches of both the internal and external carotid arteries.
Lymphatic drainage
Lymph from the ethmoid air cells drains to the submandibular and retropharyngeal group of nodes.
Innervation
The posterior ethmoidal air cells, along with the sphenoid sinus, are supplied by the posterior ethmoidal nerve, whereas the anterior ethmoidal nerve supplies the anterior ethmoidal air cells. Both these nerves are extraconal branches of the nasociliary nerve, a branch of the ophthalmic division of the trigeminal nerve.
Development
They are present at birth, and they develop rapidly from 0-4 years of age. They further mature from 8-12 years of age through puberty.
References
- 1. Jones N, Strobl A, Holland I. A Study of the CT Findings in 100 Patients with Rhinosinusitis and 100 Controls. Clin Otolaryngol Allied Sci. 1997;22(1):47-51. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2273.1997.00862.x - Pubmed
- 2. H. Ric Harnsberger, André J. Macdonald. Diagnostic and Surgical Imaging Anatomy. (2006) ISBN: 9781931884297 - Google Books
- 3. Keith L. Moore, Arthur F. Dalley, A. M. R. Agur. Clinically Oriented Anatomy. (2013) ISBN: 9781451119459 - Google Books
- 4. Last, R. J., McMinn, R. M. H.. Last's Anatomy, Regional and Applied. (1994) ISBN: 044304662X - Google Books
- 5. Paul Butler, Adam Mitchell, Jeremiah C. Healy et al. Applied Radiological Anatomy. (2012) ISBN: 9780521766661 - Google Books
- 6. Robert H. Whitaker, Neil R. Borley. Instant Anatomy. (2000) ISBN: 9780632054039 - Google Books
Incoming Links
- Middle meatus
- Patterns of sinonasal obstruction
- Transsphenoidal basilar skull fracture
- Supreme meatus
- Nasal bone
- Hiatus semilunaris
- Orbital nerve supply
- Sinonasal adenocarcinoma
- Anterior ethmoidal artery
- Lamina papyracea
- Paranasal sinus mucocele
- Basal lamella
- Allergic fungal sinusitis
- Ossifying fibromyxoid tumour
- Superior meatus
- Anterior ethmoidal notch
- Pharyngeal nerve
- Sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma
- Olfactory neuroblastoma
- Ethmoid bulla
- Ethmoid mucocele
- Paranasal sinus development (Gray's illustration)
- Esthesioneuroblastoma
- Sinonasal angiomatous polyp
- Orbital medial wall blow-out fracture and retrobulbar emphysema
- Fronto-ethmoidal sinus mucocele
- Osteoma of the ethmoid air cell
- Orbital medial wall and floor blow-out fracture
- Orbital medial wall blow-out fracture
- Dacryocystitis and dacryocystocele
- Blow-out fracture of the orbit and retrobulbar hemorrhage
- Subperiosteal abscess of the orbit
- Orbital medial wall blow-out fracture
- Frontoethmoidal mucocele
- Large frontal osteoma
- Ocular globe rupture and orbital blow-out fracture
- Orbital blow-out fracture and extraconal hematoma
- Orbital Blow-out fracture and retrobulbar hemorrhage
- Orbital Blow-out fracture and inferior rectus muscle transection
- Ethmoid sinus osteoma
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