Abstract:
Objectives; To evaluate the accuracy of three different measurement protocols of frontal sinus index for sex estimation among a group of adult Egyptian population.

Methods; One hundred and seventy-five retrospective digital lateral cephalometric radiographs of adult Egyptian individuals were included in this study (eighty males and ninety-five females). The maximum height and the maximum width (measured with 3 different methods) of the frontal sinus were measured, then three frontal sinus indices (FSIs) were calculated. All the measurements were statistically analyzed.

Results; It was found that all the three FSIs calculated in this study were higher in females than in males with statistical significant difference. Moreover, using the ROC analysis, the area under the curve (AUC) of the three protocols was less than (<0.5) suggesting no discrimination. However, FSI (Protocol 1) had the highest value AUC, followed by FSI (Protocols 2 and 3).

Conclusions; Although the frontal sinus is unique for each individual, the usage of the frontal sinus index for sexual discrimination needs more investigations and research on different populations. FSI (Protocol 1) may be a promising tool for sex estimation. Its sensitivity and specificity may improve when combined with other frontal sinus morphological parameters.