MORPHOLOGY AND MORPHOMETRY OF ADULT HUMAN CRICOID CARTILAGE: A CADAVERIC STUDY IN NORTH INDIAN POPULATION

Introduction: Out of different cartilages of larynx, cricoid is the strongest cartilage. It is the only cartilage which extends completely around the air passage. It is smaller but stronger and thicker than the thyroid cartilage. Though a lot of work has been done on thyroid cartilage it is not so for cricoid cartilage. This give us a impetus to design this study. Material and method: The material for present study comprised of 30 adult (M:F::25:5) apparently normal cadaveric larynges, obtained from the Anatomy Department of Govt. Medical College, Amritsar. Different morphometric diameters of the cricoid cartilage were measured with help of vernier caliper with least count 0.01 mm and these were noted on a predesigned proforma. All the data thus obtained was tabulated, analysed, scrutinized and compared with the earlier studies available in the literature. An attempt has been done to provide a base line data for this region. Result and Conclusion: Cricoid cartilage was oval in shape in all the specimens. Outer and inner transverse diameters and outer and inner anteroposterior diameters of cricoid cartilage were larger in males as compared to females. As we compare both diameters in males and females, outer transverse diameter was found to be larger than outer anteroposterior diameter, while inner anteroposterior diameter was larger than inner transverse diameter. Height and thickness of cricoid arch and lamina were observed to be larger in males as compared to females.