Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Research Protocols
Date Submitted: Oct 9, 2019
Date Accepted: Aug 25, 2020
Sella turcica morphology in those with genetic syndromes: a systematic review protocol
ABSTRACT
Background:
The sella turcica is an important anatomical reference used in orthodontics and the evaluation of craniofacial growth. Studies have found an association between variations in the sella turcica morphology in patients with certain syndromes affecting the craniofacial complex. It is hypothesized that each syndrome or pathological condition has a specific pattern of malformation of the sella turcica.
Objective:
This review aims to determine if genetic syndromes involving the craniofacial complex are associated with abnormal radiographic sella turcica morphology and if there is a pattern of malformation which is consistent within each syndrome.
Methods:
An electronic database search will be conducted using a planned search strategy to identify studies relevant to this review. We will include primary studies evaluating the morphology of the sella turcica on via imaging from a lateral view. Only studies with post-natal, human participants with genetic syndromes involving the craniofacial complex will be included in the review. We will place no restrictions on language or time-frame. Studies will be identified and screened for relevance and eligibility by two researchers. Data will be extracted from selected studies. We will provide a narrative synthesis of our findings and provide a structured summary containing pre-specified themes. We will also assess the risk of bias and an assessment of the quality of the included studies using the risk of bias tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute.
Results:
The protocol is registered with PROSPERO (#CRD42019148060) and approved by the University of Western Cape Biomedical Science Research Ethics Committee (BM205/3). The literature search was conducted in September 2019 and updated in July 2020.
Conclusions:
The results of this systematic review are expected to provide a comprehensive list of morphological variations of the sella turcica which will aid in the recognition of syndromes affecting the craniofacial complex. It may also provide insights into patterns of craniofacial malformations which may be genetically linked, thus adding to the body of evidence relating to genetics and craniofacial malformations. Clinical Trial: PROSPERO #CRD42019148060
Citation
Request queued. Please wait while the file is being generated. It may take some time.
Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.