Correlation between gender and the antero-posterior diameter of normal pancreatic head

Abstract

Background: Pancreatic carcinoma involving the head, accounts for most cases of extra hepatic obstruction of
the hepato-biliary system and usually go undetected in its early stage. Also, reports show that gender is an
independent risk factor for severity of gastrointestinal and non-gastrointestinal diseases and many of these
diseases including cases of pancreatic carcinoma, show a gender bias, hence the rationale for the study.
Objective: To assess the relationship between the Antero-Posterior (AP) diameter of the pancreatic head and
gender using Contrast Enhanced Computed Tomography (CECT) scan.
Methods: Eighty (80) apparently normal computed tomography (CT) scan images of 41(51.25 %) male and
39 (48.75 %) female subjects were retrospectively, and prospectively, evaluated with their ages which ranged
from 19 to 70 years, obtained from Image Diagnostics and the Georges Diagnostic Centres, both in PortHarcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria for a period of eight months (January - August, 2016).
Results: The mean AP diameter of the pancreatic head in the study population was found to be 2.6 ± 0.3 cm.
This result was however, smaller in the males (2.60 ± 0.3 cm) compared to the females (2.70 ± 0.3 cm) in the
study population. A weak negative correlation (r = -0.327) was observed between pancreatic head AP diameter
and gender (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Results obtained from the present study showed no significant relationship between the AP
diameter of the pancreatic head and gender in the study population.