[Tumors of the sellar region and the cavernous sinus. Evaluation of diagnostic procedures and therapeutic orientation].

Two cases of infrequently seen tumors of the cavernous sinus and the clivus regions are presented. One of them was a chordoma and the other, a myeloma, and both were approached by the transphenoidal route. The clinical picture and the diagnostic procedures are reviewed, and the several surgical approaches to these regions are discussed. These regional processes should be submitted to a precise radiological evaluation: plain skull films, conventional tomography, arteriography, and computerized tomography scan, in order to establish their origin and their extension, and also to determine the proper approach. The authors conclude that all these regional tumors must be operated on, and that the transphenoidal approach is the most effective. This approach is extradural, well known through the experience brought about by the pituitary surgery, and with a low morbi-mortality rate.