Direct Venous Communications between the Superior Sagittal Sinus and Facial Venous System: An Anatomical Observation in Human Cadavers
Purpose: An anastomosis between the extracranial and intracranial venous systems is a potential portal of entry for inflammatory disease of the facial region into the intracranial cavity. Recently we reported that a direct anastomosis exists between the superior sagittal sinus (SSS) and facial vein via the olfactory vein in rats. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether such venous connection exists in humans. Methods and Methods: Thirty skulls (60 sides) and 33 adult cadavers were used in this study. The area of the ethmoidal foramen was dissected and examined. Contrast medium was injected into the SSS in three cadavers and scanned with X-ray before dissection. The microscopic structures of the nasal concha and septum mucosa were observed after hematoxylin and eosin staining. Results: The dura mater which surrounded olfactory nerves thinned out and became continuous with the periosteum in the ethmoid bone. A larvaceous space was identified around the dural sheath of olfactory nerves as they exited the cribriform foramina. The olfactory nerves originated from the olfactory mucosa lining the superior and middle nasal concha and ran upward within the bone of the nasal concha. These results suggest that the olfactory nerve may be injured inadvertently in the nasal concha during the surgery and that this injury is likely to be one of the possible causes of olfactory disturbance. Olfactory nerves which were dividied into nasal concha group and septum group looked like horseshoes. Number of fila olfactoria was (10.33±1.81), diameter of fila olfactoria root was (0.90±0.22)mm, and length of fila olfactoria was (10.22±2.20)mm in nasal concha group compared with (6.28±1.04), (1.17±0.24)mm, and (5.91±1.95)mm in septum group. Number of cribriform foramina in each side was (16.33±2.79), longer diameter of cribriform foramina was (1.09±0.52)mm. The number and diameter of the cribriform foramina varied greatly which is much larger than the diameter of the olfactory nerves. The dural sheath of olfactory nerves developed an image in X-ray film. The images demonstrated that after its injection into the SSS, contrast medium was present in the nasal wall. The histology section of the dural sheath revealed that some sheaths contained not only the nerves but veins. Conclusion: This study reveals that a direct anastomosis exists between the SSS and the facial vein system via the veins in the cribriform foramina in humans.
olfactory nerve superior sagittal sinus microanatomy
Kunpeng Liu Hui Han Xuefei Deng Bin Gao Ming Zhang
Department of human anatomy, Anhui Medical University, Heifei, China Department of Radiology, the Third Affiliated Hospital, Anhui Medical University, Heifei, China Department of Anatomy & Structural Biology, University of Otago, P. O. Box 913, Dunedin 9001, New Ze
国际会议
首届国际断层影像解剖学研讨会(The 1st International Symposium on Sectional and Inaging Anatomy)
青岛
英文
96
2007-12-15（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）