Evaluating the Prevalence of Elongated Styloid Process in Dry Human Skulls

Styloid process is a bony projection from the inferior part of the petrous temporal bone of the skull. The research aimed to study the styloid process structure and evaluate the prevalence of elongated styloid processes in dry skulls collated by the Department of Anatomical Sciences University of Abuja. A total of 120 dry skulls were used for the research. The length and Inter-styloid distance were measured using a digital Vernier’s calliper. Data were analysed using the IBM SPSS version 23 and descriptive statistics were derived. Results for the mean lengths are as follows: 25.40 mm and 27. 50 mm for the right lateral and right posterior views of the male Styloid processes while 26.60 mm and 27.70 mm are the results for their left lateral and left posterior views. The mean lengths of the female Styloid processes are as follows: 29.67 mm and 26.67 mm for their right lateral and right posterior views while 39.33 mm and 37.00 mm are the values of their left lateral and left posterior views. The mean Interstyloid distance for the male and female skulls are 77.16 mm and 68.20 mm respectively. Results revealed a prevalence of elongated styloid processes in the male and female skulls with a high prevalence in the female skulls. The Inter-styloid distance between both sexes showed a significant difference, this proposes that the Interstyloid distance could be an integral measure for sexual dimorphism.

Key Words: anthropology, styloid process, elongated styloid process, inter-styloid distance