Morphological Variations of the External Ear in Omuma Population Rivers State

Studies have shown that ear shape and size differ significantly among populations, making it a valuable trait for anthropological and forensic. Was a descriptive and cross-sectional study where 400 participants (219 males and181 females) aged 16-45 were used. Camera was used to take photographs with a 2cm graph sheet placed behind the ear horizontally and vertically to take reading from the photograph using a computer. The length of the right and left concha was 2.56 ± 0.31 cm and 1.8 ± 0.28 cm, respectively. The breadth of the right and left concha was 1.63 ± 0.32 cm and 2.45 ± 0.24 cm, respectively. The length of the right concha of males and females was 2.43 ± 0.22 cm and 2.6 ± 0.3 cm, respectively. There was a significant difference (p=0.045) in the length of the right concha between males and females. The length of the left concha of males and females was 2.48 ± 0.2 cm and 2.45 ± 0.2 cm, respectively. There was a significant difference (p=0.039) in the length of the left concha between males and females. The breadth of the right concha of males and females was 2.38 ± 0.4 cm and 2.24 ± 0.32 cm, respectively, there was no significant difference in the breadth of the right concha between males and females. The breadth of the left concha of males and females was 1.75 ± 0.31 cm and 1.53 ± 0.3 cm, respectively, there was no significant difference (p=0.102) in the breadth of the left concha between males and females. The length of the right concha of subjects within the ages of 16–25, 26–35, and 36–45 was 2.55 ± 0.34 cm, 2.63 ± 0.3 cm, and 2.84 ± 0.53 cm, respectively. There was a significant difference (p=0.03) in the length of the right concha among the age groups. The length of the left concha of subjects within the ages of 16–25, 26–35, and 36–45 was 2.52 ± 0.31 cm, 2.62 ± 0.32 cm, and 2.46 ± 0.25 cm, respectively. There was a significant difference (p=0.04) in the length of the left concha among the age groups. The breadth of the right concha of subjects within the ages of 16–25, 26–35, and 36–45 was 2.18 ± 0.47 cm, 2.25 ± 0.52 cm, and 1.94 ± 0.48 cm, respectively. There was no significant difference (p=0.263) in the breadth of the right concha among the age groups. The breadth of the left concha of subjects within the ages of 16–25, 26–35, and 36–45 was 1.64 ± 0.32 cm, 1.65 ± 0.32 cm, and 1.57 ± 0.31 cm, respectively. There was no significant difference (p=0.832) in the breadth of the left concha among the age groups. Morphology of the helix on the studied population showed that 103 (25.8%) of the subjects had a concave marginal helix, 83 (20.8%) had a round helix, and 97 (24.1%) had a flat helix. The study provides a comprehensive morphometric and morphology profile of the concha and helix within this population. These findings could be useful in fields such as anthropology, forensics, and plastic surgery.