title: Age-related morphological changes in squamous and parietomastoid sutures of human cranium.
abstract: Age-related morphological changes in the inner and outer surfaces of the squamous and parietomastoid sutures were examined in 65 skulls (35 male, 30 female) obtained from Japanese subjects 5-90 years of age at the time of death. Dimensions were measured in both the horizontal and sagittal planes. Wavelength analysis was done by three-dimensional construction. Irregularities were evaluated by calculating fractal dimensions. The outer squamous suture showed no significant age-related changes in size, but wavelength increased because of the development of bony interdigitations with aging. The posterior part of the outer squamous suture showed significant age-related increases in both wavelength (p < 0.01, R(2) = 0.164) and fractal dimension (p < 0.01, R(2) = 0.101) in males. The parietomastoid suture showed significant age-related changes in size (p < 0.05), but not in wavelength or fractal dimension. These distinct morphological changes found on both the inner and outer surfaces of the squamous and parietomastoid sutures suggest that the age-related morphological characteristics of these sutures are affected by extrinsic mechanical forces.
authors.affiliation: Division of Oral Pathology, Department of Oral Medicine and Bioregulation, Tohoku University Graduate School of Dentistry, Sendai, Japan. koji3119@maple.ocn.ne.jp
authors.forename: Koji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: Yoshinaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shimizu
authors.forename: Kiyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ooya
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003393:Cranial Sutures / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D017709:Fractals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged