Vol.:(0123456789) 1 3 Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy (2020) 42:75–80 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-019-02358-w ORIGINAL ARTICLE Interaction efect of tegmen tympani and superior semicircular canal statuses on the thickness of the roof of the glenoid fossa: a cross‑sectional descriptive study Jaime Whyte 1,8  · Ana Isabel Cisneros 1,8  · Jesús José Fraile 2  · Ana Whyte 3  · Rafael Crovetto 4  · Luis Vicente Monteagudo 5  · Miguel Angel Crovetto 6  · María Teresa Tejedor 5,7 Received: 24 May 2019 / Accepted: 8 October 2019 / Published online: 22 October 2019 © Springer-Verlag France SAS, part of Springer Nature 2019 Abstract Purpose Homogeneous development of temporal bone structures is explained by their ontogenic origin; tegmen tympani (TT) and superior semicircular canal (SSC) are related with the glenoid fossa at the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). There- fore, our objective was to determine a possible relationship between TT status (dehiscence or integrity) and the roof of the glenoid fossa (RGF) thickness; SSC status has also been considered. Methods This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in two tertiary hospitals on 95 patients (109 ears) present- ing hypoacusia, facial palsy, vertigo, tinnitus, and other single or combined symptoms, and submitted to a thin-section multidetector-row computed axial tomography (CT) scan. Results A signifcant interaction efect of TT × SSC statuses on RGF thickness was found (p = 0.049). A signifcant difer- ence in RGF thickness was found only for SSC integrity status between TT integrity and TT dehiscence (p = 0.004). The TT dehiscence increased the risk for RGF dehiscence 12.047 times (p = 0.002). Conclusions There is an interaction efect of the statuses of both TT and SSC on the thickness of the RGF, instead of an independent efect of the TT status. When RGF dehiscence is found, TT and SSC statuses should be assessed, to discard associated dehiscences. Keywords Temporal bone · Positron-emission tomography · Statistics · Cross-sectional studies · Anatomy Introduction Homogeneous development of temporal bone structures is explained by their ontogenic origin. Structures of middle cranial fossa, such as tegmen tympani (TT) and superior semicircular canal (SSC), are related with the glenoid fossa at the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). Friedland and Michel [3] and Rizk et al. [14] referred to a statistically signifcant decrease in the thickness of the mid- dle cranial fossa and its diferent components in situations involving temporal bone defect. The relationship between TT and SSC statuses (dehiscence or integrity) was previ- ously described [18]. In a recent work, Crovetto-Martínez et al. [1] found a relationship between the thickness of the roof of the glenoid fossa (RGF) and the thickness of the bone covering the superior semicircular canal (SSC); the thinning or thickening of both structures was similar, and the associa- tion of SSC dehiscence with RGF thinning or dehiscence was frequently observed. * María Teresa Tejedor ttejedor@unizar.es 1 Department of Human Anatomy and Histology, School of Medicine, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain 2 Servicio de Otorrinolaringología, Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet, Paseo Isabel La Católica, Zaragoza, Spain 3 Department of Animal Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain 4 Department of Stomatology II, University of the Basque Country (UPV EHU), Barrio Sarriena, Leioa, Vizcaya, Spain 5 Department of Anatomy, Embryology and Genetics, School of Veterinary Medicine, Universidad de Zaragoza, C/Miguel Servet 177, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain 6 Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Basurto University Hospital, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Avenida de Montevideo, Bilbao, Vizcaya, Spain 7 CIBERCV, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain 8 Research Group B40/17D (DGA), Zaragoza, Spain