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    Found 903118732 4683

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    Bogdan Robert C
    The document describes the anatomy of the foramen spinosum, infratemporal fossa, and middle cranial fossa. The foramen spinosum transmits nerves and vessels and is located posterior to the foramen ovale. The infratemporal fossa contains muscles, nerves, and vessels and communicates with other areas through openings in bones. The middle cranial fossa floor is formed by the sphenoid bone and contains the pituitary gland and temporal lobes.

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    Found 903118732 4683

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    Bogdan Robert C
    17 views2 pages
    The document describes the anatomy of the foramen spinosum, infratemporal fossa, and middle cranial fossa. The foramen spinosum transmits nerves and vessels and is located posterior to the foramen ovale. The infratemporal fossa contains muscles, nerves, and vessels and communicates with other areas through openings in bones. The middle cranial fossa floor is formed by the sphenoid bone and contains the pituitary gland and temporal lobes.

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    The document describes the anatomy of the foramen spinosum, infratemporal fossa, and middle cranial fossa. The foramen spinosum transmits nerves and vessels and is located posterior to the foramen ovale. The infratemporal fossa contains muscles, nerves, and vessels and communicates with other areas through openings in bones. The middle cranial fossa floor is formed by the sphenoid bone and contains the pituitary gland and temporal lobes.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as RTF, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as rtf, pdf, or txt
    17 views2 pages

    Found 903118732 4683

    Uploaded by

    Bogdan Robert C
    The document describes the anatomy of the foramen spinosum, infratemporal fossa, and middle cranial fossa. The foramen spinosum transmits nerves and vessels and is located posterior to the foramen ovale. The infratemporal fossa contains muscles, nerves, and vessels and communicates with other areas through openings in bones. The middle cranial fossa floor is formed by the sphenoid bone and contains the pituitary gland and temporal lobes.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    The foramen spinosum lies posterior to the foramen ovale on the greater wing of the sphenoid

    bone and antero-medial to the sphenoidal spine. It transmits the meningeal branch of the
    mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve and the middle meningeal vessels. Anterior and
    medial to the foramen ovale is the sphenoidal emissary foramen (of Vesalius). Both the
    sphenoidal emissary foramen and foramen spinosum link the middle cranial fossa and the
    infratemporal fossa (see below). The sphenoidal emissary foramen is often absent but, when
    present, it transmits an emissary vein from the cavernous sinus to the pterygoid plexus.

    Infratemporal Fossae

    The infratemporal fossa is the space located deep to the ramus of the mandible.

    The fossa is bounded anteriorly by the posterior surface of the maxilla and posteriorly by the
    styloid apparatus, carotid sheath and deep part of the parotid gland. Medially, the lateral pterygoid
    plate and the superior constrictor muscle of the pharynx can be found. Laterally lies the ramus of
    the mandible. The roof is formed by the infratemporal surface of the greater wing of the sphenoid.
    The infratemporal fossa has no anatomical floor; it is continuous with tissue spaces in the neck.

    The infratemporal fossa communicates with the temporal fossa, deep to the zygomatic arch, and
    communicates with the pterygopalatine fossa through the pterygomaxillary fissure. At the base of
    the cranium, the foramen ovale and foramen spinosum enter the fossa through the sphenoid
    bone. The foramen lacerum and the petrotympanic, squamotympanic and petrosquamous
    fissures are also found close to the infratemporal fossa. On the medial surface of the ramus of the
    mandible is the mandibular foramen.

    The Contents of the Infratemporal Fossa

    The major structures which occupy the infratemporal fossa are:

    i) The lateral and medial pterygoid muscles

    ii) The mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve

    iii) The chorda tympani branch of the facial nerve

    iv) The otic parasympathetic ganglion

    v) The maxillary artery and branches

    The pterygoid venous plexus

    The key to understanding the relationships of structures within the infratemporal fossa is the
    lateral pterygoid muscle. This lies in the roof of the fossa, running antero-posteriorly in a
    horizontal plane from the region of the pterygoid plates to the mandibular condyle. It consists of
    two heads, an upper head and a lower head. Deep to the muscle arise the branches of the
    mandibular nerve and the main origin of the medial pterygoid muscle. Superficially lies the
    maxillary artery. The buccal branch of the mandibular nerve passes between the two heads of the
    lateral pterygoid muscle. The medial pterygoid muscle and the lingual and inferior alveolar nerves
    emerge below the inferior border of the lateral pterygoid muscle. The deep temporal nerves
    emerge from the superior border of the lateral pterygoid muscle. At the upper border emerge the
    deep temporal nerves and vessels. Concentrated around and within the lateral pterygoid muscle
    lies a venous network, the pterygoid venous plexus.

    Middle Cranial Fossae

    The cranial cavity is the interior of the skull that accommodates the brain and associated
    structures. Many of the contents are located near the floor of the cranial cavity, and this region
    can be divided into three distinct fossae; the anterior, middle and posterior cranial fossae. The
    fossae have a marked step-like appearance, such that the floor of the anterior cranial fossa is at
    the highest level and the floor of the posterior cranial fossa is lowest.

    The middle cranial fossa consists of a central part formed by the body of the sphenoid bone and
    the right and left lateral parts are each formed by the greater wings of the sphenoid bone and the
    squamous and petrous parts of the temporal bones. The central part is occupied mainly by the
    pituitary gland. The lateral parts contain the temporal lobes of the cerebral hemispheres of the
    brain.

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