Background
The nasal septal body is located superior to the inferior turbinate and consists of septal cartilage
thicker than the rest of septal mucosa.
Object
To clear the ultrastructural relation between nasal septal body and inferior turbinate using
electron microscope.
Patients and methods
Biopsies of the nasal septal body and inferior turbinate were stained with hematoxylin–eosin
and with Masson’s trichrome stain and Periodic acid–Schiff (PAS) stain. Photomicrography with
morphometric analysis was used to determine the relative area proportions of each tissue type.
Results
Nasal septal body has a prominence of glandular tissues with a mean proportion of 19.89%,
in contrast to inferior turbinate, which had 7.89%. Inferior turbinate was found to have a
prominence of collagen fibers with a mean proportion of 26.58%, in contrast to the septal
body, which had 13.76%. By electron microscope, epithelium of the septal body had a large
number of cilia and microvilli, the junctional complex between the cells were the tightly sealed
zone (tight junction), while inferior turbinate mucosa had less number of cilia than that of septal
body epithelial cells.
Conclusion
The presence of venous sinusoids and abundant seromucinous glands in the nasal septal
swell body and its histological and ultrastructural similar