Frontal Section Perspective of the Frontal Sinuses

Description

Anterior coronal section through an adult male skull reveals the paired frontal sinuses as air-filled cavities within the frontal bone, separated by an intersinus septum that commonly deviates off midline. Inferiorly, each sinus floors onto the superior orbital plate, placing the sinus immediately superior to the orbital roof and superomedial to the orbit, while the posterior wall lies just anterior to the anterior cranial fossa. Medially, the frontal recess region leads toward the anterior ethmoidal air cells between the orbits, with the maxillary sinuses positioned more inferior and lateral beneath the orbital floors. An anterior slice like this matters because the frontal sinus outflow pathway is narrow, variable, and a frequent site of obstruction in chronic rhinosinusitis, with mucosal thickening and retained secretions tending to track from the frontal recess into the anterior ethmoid complex. FESS planning and postoperative interpretation hinge on understanding how close the frontal sinus is to the orbit and the skull base; breach of the posterior table risks CSF leak, while injury near the superomedial orbit can involve the anterior ethmoidal artery. Frontal bone trauma adds another layer, since fractures of the anterior table, posterior table, or nasofrontal duct carry different management pathways. Use this artwork for ENT teaching on paranasal sinus anatomy, frontal recess drainage, and the relationship of the frontal sinuses to the superior orbital borders and anterior cranial fossa. It also fits radiology and surgical publishing as a clean correlate to coronal CT of the paranasal sinuses when discussing Lund-Mackay patterns, mucocele expansion, or frontal sinus fracture classification. Anatomical accuracy verified by SciePro's Medical Advisory Board.