Evaluation of anatomical and morphological characteristics of the ınfraorbital foramen

Abstract

Objective: The infraorbital foramen is the hole on the face where the infraorbital canal, which carries the infraorbital artery, vein and nerve, opens. In our study, we aimed to investigate the infraorbital foramen, which is important in surgical procedures to be performed in the midface region, anatomically and morphometrically. Materials and Methods: In our study, 111 dry skulls and 144 hemifaces were used. The incidence and type of infraorbital foramen were classified. The incidence of accessory infraorbital foramen was investigated. The shortest distance of the infraorbital foramen to the nasal notch, infraorbital margin, alveolar juga of the canines, and the lower end of the zygomaticomaxillary suture; additionally, face width and nasal height were measured with a digital caliper. Results: As a result of the study, 69.4% of the infraorbital foramen in 144 hemifaces were oval, 15.3% were semilunar, 9% were round, and 0.7% were triangular. We did not encounter infraorbital foramen in 5.6% of the hemifaces.We found the average distance of the infraorbital foramen to the nasal notch as 15±1.9 mm, the shortest distance to the lower end of the zygomaticomaxillary suture as 25.37±2.26 mm, the distance to the infraorbital margin as 8.41±1.53 mm, and the distance to the alveolar juga of the canines as 29.79±2.9 mm. We found the mean face width to be 112.76±6.19 mm and the mean nose height to be 51.61±6.19 mm. Conclusion: The infraorbital foramen is an anatomical reference point used in oral and maxillofacial surgeries, especially for local anesthesia applications. In order to prevent nerve damage and provide reliable regional anesthesia during surgical interventions, it is important to have detailed information about the anatomical features of the infraorbital foramen. We believe that our study will provide information about the variations of the infraorbital foramen to clinicians and surgeons.