Prevalence of high riding jugular bulb and dehiscence: An evaluation using computed tomography

Abstract

Introduction: A high riding jugular bulb is the most common anatomical variation of the petrous section of the temporal bone. The objective of our study was to determine the prevalence of dehiscence and high riding jugular bulb (HRJB) in a Mexican population. Material and methods: This is an observational retrospective, cross-sectional, and descriptive study. The presence of High Riding Jugular Bulb was analyzed, taking as reference the basal turn of the cochlea in axial sections and then reformatted in coronal sections to observe the presence or absence of dehiscence. Patients between 0 to 95 years of age were included and classified by age groups for analysis. Infants included patients ≤ 2 years old, children from 3 to 12, teenagers from 13 to 18, and adults included patients >18 years of age. Results: A total of 229 CT (458 ears) were included. The prevalence of HRJB was 38.4%, higher in women (44.6%), and present bilaterally in 7.9% of patients. It is the highest prevalence reported in the literature. Dehiscence was present in 1.3% of the population. Conclusion: High Riding Jugular Bulb and its dehiscence are important anatomical variations associated with several symptoms like unexplained headache and tinnitus. Due to unawareness of these variations in surgery, the lesion to a vessel could be fatal. It is otorhinolaryngologists be aware of the high prevalence for patient safety.

Keywords

• Jugular bulb. High riding jugular bulb. Jugular vein. Dehiscence. Middle ear.