Elongated Stylohyoid Process: A Pathological or Physiological Phenomenon?

Abstract

Background: Calcification and morphological variation are fairly common in patients presenting to oral and maxillofacial radiology clinics with stylohyoid complex. Objectives: The present study used digital radiography to investigate in detail whether or not elongated stylohyoid complex is linked to clinical symptoms, gender, and increased age. Finding such relationship can affect the diagnosis of the condition and the selection of treatments. Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 186 patients aged 30 to 70 presenting to a private oral and maxillofacial radiology clinic in Rafsanjan, Iran, for digital dental panoramic radiography. All the patients completed a demographic questionnaire and clinical symptoms associated with stylohyoid complex. The chi-square test and Fisher's exact test were used to compare categorical variables, while independent two-sample t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to compare quantitative variables, in both men and women and across age groups. The significance level was set at 0.05. Results: A total of 186 participants entered the study, consisting of 90 men (48.4%) and 96 women (51.6%). The mean stylohyoid