Prevalence and Patterns of Anatomical Variations in Pulmonary Fissures: A CT Scan Evaluation
Keywords:
Anatomical Variations, Pulmonary Fissures, CT Scans, Lung AnatomyAbstract
Background: The pulmonary fissures exhibit significant anatomical variability, which can affect the interpretation of radiological images, the localization of disease within specific lung segments, and surgical planning. Even though variations in fissures have been studied extensively in cadaveric specimens, up-to-date CT-based evaluations of living populations remain relatively rare. Objective: To evaluate the prevalence and characterize the patterns of anatomical variations in the pulmonary fissures using CT scan, with a comparative analysis between the right and left lungs and across different genders. Methodology: A cross-sectional study examining 320 chest CT scans obtained at a tertiary care hospital was conducted. Patients with distorted lung anatomy or incomplete visualization were excluded. Every scan was assessed separately by skilled radiologists employing the multiplanar reconstruction method. Major fissures (right and left oblique fissures, right horizontal fissure) and accessory fissures (superior, inferior, left minor fissure, azygos fissure) were documented with respect to presence, type, and completeness. Frequencies were compared by lung side and gender using chi-square tests. Results: Fissural variations were identified in 78 cases (24.4%). Variations were slightly more common in the right lung (52.6%) than the left (47.4%). The incomplete right oblique fissure was the most frequent abnormality (8.4%), followed by the incomplete left oblique fissure (6.6%). Gender-based analysis showed significantly higher prevalence of left incomplete oblique fissure in males (p < 0.05), while other variations showed no significant gender association. Conclusion: Anatomical variations of pulmonary fissures are common and demonstrate notable diversity across individuals. CT imaging plays a critical role in identifying these variants, which hold important implications for radiologic diagnosis, disease mapping, and preoperative planning.References
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