Morphological Characterization of the Human Calvarium in Relation to the Diploic and Cranial Thickness Utilizing X-Ray Computed Microtomography

Abstract

When attempting to establish accurate models for the human diploe, micro-scale morphological differences in the four main areas of the calvaria could also be considered. In this study, X-ray computed microtomography (μ-CT) images were analyzed in order to quantitatively characterize the micro-architecture of the human calvarium diploe. A bone specimen from each area of the skull (temporal, frontal, parietal and occipital) was extracted from a set of 5 human donors and each specimen was characterized in terms of density, specific surface area, trabecular thickness, trabecular spacing. The obtained results revealed that subject-individual structural differences could be related with the diploic as well as the total cranial thickness of the human skull bones. Some tendencies of dependency could also be made with respect to the age of the subject. A consideration of these individual variations can improve traditional models that assume equal conditions throughout the skull.