Skull base foramina

Nonsyndromic unilateral coronal craniosynostosis (UCS) is a rare congenital disorder that results from premature fusion of either coronal suture. The result is growth restriction across the suture, between the ipsilateral frontal and parietal bones, leading to bony dysmorphogenesis affecting the calvarium, orbit, and skull base. Prior studies have reported associations between UCS and visual abnormalities. The present study utilizes a novel geometric morphometric analysis to compare dimensions of orbital foramina on synostotic versus nonsynostotic sides in patients with UCS...

OBJECTIVES: To summarize the characteristics of local extension of eccentric and central nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to improve clinical target volume (CTV) delineation. METHODS: MRI of 870 newly diagnosed NPC patients were reviewed. According to tumor distribution features, the NPCs were divided into eccentric and central lesions. RESULTS: All local invasions presented as continuous invasion from gross lesions and structures adjacent to the nasopharynx were more likely to be invaded...

Variations of the foramina located at the skull base can have direct clinical implications. For example, transcutaneous approaches to the trigeminal nerve using long spinal needles for treatment of trigeminal neuralgia can inadvertently enter such variant foramina and potentially result in hemorrhage. Therefore, knowledge of such variant foramina is important to the clinician treating or diagnosing patients based on imaging of this region. We report an adult male skull found to have unusual foramina located at the skull base...

The jugular foramen harbors anatomically complex bony, venous and neural structures. It is closely associated with small canals including the mastoid, tympanic, and cochlear canaliculi, and the stylomastoid foramen. The minute intraosseous branches of Arnold's and Jacobson's nerves (<1 mm in length) remain difficult to study with current imaging techniques, and cadaveric dissection is the most reliable approach. Our aim was to examine the variations of Jacobson's and Arnold's canaliculi and nerves and to provide detailed cadaveric graphics...

Background and Objectives : The spinous foramen (FS) of the skull is an opening located in the greater wing of the sphenoid bone at the base of the skull, and it includes the middle meningeal vessels and the meningeal branch of the mandibular trigeminal nerve. The FS is commonly used as an anatomical landmark in neurosurgical procedures and neuroimaging of the middle cranial fossa because of its relationship with other cranial foramina and surrounding vascular and nervous structures. Thus, specific knowledge of its topography and possible anatomical variations is important regarding some surgical interventions and skull imaging...

The endoscopic endonasal approach (EEA) provides a direct trajectory to ventral skull base lesions, avoidance of brain retraction, and clear visualization of cranial nerves as they exit skull base foramina. Despite these benefits, the EEA is not without complications. Here, we review published literature highlighting complications associated with the EEA including cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak, cranial nerve (CN) dysfunction, pituitary gland dysfunction, internal carotid artery (ICA) injury, infection, and others; we place special emphasis on discussing the prevention of these complications...

The chondrocranium is a key structure of the skull, but our knowledge of its embryonic development is based mostly on investigations of few stages across taxa. Variation of chondrocranial features is known across species, but little is known about intraspecific variation, or its evolution in the context of domestication. Here, we investigated two specific structures of the chondrocranium in three windows of embryonic development. The anatomy of one of these structures was also compared among adult skulls of chickens and their wild ancestor (red junglefowl [RJF])...

Eponyms highlight the contributions made to medicine over the years, and celebrate individuals for their work involving diseases, pathologies, and anatomical landmarks. We have compiled an in-depth report of eponyms used in skull base neurosurgery, as well as the historical contexts of the personalities behind the names. A literature search identified 36 eponyms of the bones, foramina and ligaments of the skull base named after anatomists and physician-scientists. The 36 eponymous structures pinpointed include Arnold's canal, the foramen of Arnold, Bill's bar, Bertin's bones, Civinini's canal, Civinini's ligament, Civinini's process, sinodural angle of Citelli, Clivus of Blumenbach, Dorello's canal, the Eustachian tube, the eponymous cavernous sinus triangles of Parkinson, Kawase, Mullan, Dolenc, Glasscock and Hakuba, the Fallopian canal, the Glasserian fissure, Gruber's ligament, Haller cells, the spine of Henle, Highmore's antrum, the foramen of Huschke, Hyrtl's fissure, the Ingrassia process, Jacobson's canal, the MacEwen triangle, Meckel's cave, the Onodi air cell, the Pacchionian foramen, Fossa of Rosenmuller, the foramen of Vesalius, the Vidian canal, Trautman's triangle and the annular tendon of Zinn...

Introduction: Foramen ovale is one of the most significant foramina of skull base and transmits mandibular nerve. Its detailed knowledge is crucial in treatment of trigeminal neuralgia and various diagnostic practices. Aim: Aim of the study was to provide anatomical data of foramen ovale regarding number, shape, diameters and its relation to nearby bony landmarks. Material and method: The present study was ethically approved and 100 dry adult human skulls were included in the study to evaluate 200 foramina ovale...

A snake-like body plan and burrowing lifestyle characterize numerous vertebrate groups as a result of convergent evolution. One such group is the amphisbaenians, a clade of limbless, fossorial lizards that exhibit head-first burrowing behavior. Correlated with this behavior, amphisbaenian skulls are more rigid and coossified than those of nonburrowing lizards. However, due to their lifestyle, there are many gaps in our understanding of amphisbaenian anatomy, including how their cranial osteology varies among individuals of the same species and what that reveals about constraints on the skull morphology of head-first burrowing taxa...

OBJECTIVE: Spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks are associated with elevated intracranial pressure and idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH). Skull base erosion and widening of the foramen ovale have been reported in patients with IIH. This study sought to investigate changes in the size of the foramen ovale and foramen spinosum in patients with IIH, spontaneous CSF leak, and encephalocele. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Tertiary care academic medical center...

There is increasing interest in developing a minimally invasive imaging modality to safely evaluate dynamic microscopic changes of the olfactory mucosa and cribriform foramina. Herein, we utilized three-dimensional (3D) optical coherence tomography (OCT) to characterize the ex vivo stratified substructure of olfactory mucosa in rabbits and create 3D reconstructed images of olfactory foramina. Olfactory mucosa and cribriform plates from four New Zealand White rabbits were dissected and imaged using two swept-source OCT systems: (1) 1...

Vertebral arteries (VAs) serve as major blood vessels to the central nervous system. Vertebral arteries typically arise from the subclavian arteries and ascend separately within the transverse foramina of the cervical vertebrae (C6-C1) before entering the skull at the foramen magnum and joining at the base of the pons to form the basilar artery of the vertebrobasilar circulation. Therefore, variations in the origin and anatomic course of the vertebral arteries have implications for invasive medical procedures involving the superior thoracic/cervical regions or the cervical vertebrae...

The greater wings of the sphenoid bone (GWS) comprise the components of the sphenoid bone that make up most of the posterior orbital wall and form the anterior and medial parts of the floor of the middle cranial fossa. Many important skull base foramina, which transmit vital neurovascular structures, are present in these paired wings on either side of the central body of the sphenoid bone. A wide variety of diseases can affect the GWS, ranging from benign osseus lesions to malignant primary and secondary bone abnormalities...

Trigeminal neuropathies (TNp) are a group of well-characterized disorders that involve damage to or infiltration of the trigeminal nerve. The underlying etiology of trigeminal neuropathy can be traumatic, inflammatory, autoimmune, paraneoplastic, malignant, and very rarely infectious. We present a case of trigeminal neuropathy due to local malignant invasion of the mandibular nerve with mandibular nerve enhancement at the foramen ovale and foramen rotundum. In the process, we review various etiologies of trigeminal neuropathy associated with trigeminal nerve involvement at the foramina...

Pterygospinous and pterygoalar ligaments, present in close proximity of foramen ovale at the base of skull, ossify creating pterygospinous and pterygoalar foramina, which causes problems in accessing retro and parapharyngeal spaces, trigeminal ganglion for treating trigeminal neuralgia by thermocoagulation and blocking it. Besides, these anatomical entities may compress nearby neurovascular structures causing discomfort to patients. considering immense clinical significance associated with ossification of pter-ygospinous and pterygoalar ligaments, the study has been carried out...

The vasculature of the pituitary gland is discussed briefly and the details of an anatomical discovery of the vessels supplying the pituitary gland provided. Twenty latex injected cadaveric heads were dissected. Any vessels that were found to penetrate the sella turcica and travel to the pituitary gland were documented and measured. Additionally, 25 adult skulls were evaluated for the presence, size, and sites of bony foramina in the floor of sella turcica. Trans-sellar vessels were identified in 65% of specimens...

INTRODUCTION: Apert and Crouzon syndromes are among the most common craniosynostosis syndromes found in children. Mutations have been found in the fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) gene in both syndromes. Although different mutations, the common mutated receptor raises suspicion for its involvement in the cranial morphogenesis found in these syndromic craniosynostosis patients. The shapes of these children's skulls have long been thought to be the result of early fusion of the synchondroses...

The foramen magnum is an opening located at the base of the skull, more specifically in the occipital bone, and it has a remarkable anatomical significance, as many important structures, such as nerves, arteries and the medulla oblongata, pass through it. A small, large or asymmetric foramen magnum can end up causing clinical complications, such as compression, or increasing the risk of herniation. By becoming aware of the most frequent sizes and shapes in the population, it also becomes easier to detect diseases that change its morphology, such as achondroplasia, which makes it smaller, and Chiari I and II malformations, which makes it larger...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Due to surgical advancements, the accurate detection of perineural disease spread has become increasingly important in the management and prognostication of head and neck cancers, though MR evaluation has thus far been limited by technical and logistic challenges. The purpose of this study was to specifically evaluate the relative capability of 3D CISS and 3D T2-SPACE imaging to delineate the proximal intracranial divisions of the normal trigeminal nerve, an area important in determining the resectability of intracranial perineural disease...