Abnormality of the Foramen Spinosum due to a Variation in the Trajectory of the Middle Meningeal Artery: A Case Report in Human

Abstract

Originating from the maxillary artery, the middle meningeal artery (MMA) is predominantly periosteal irrigating the bone and dura mater. It enters the floor of the middle cranial fossa through the foramen spinosum, travels laterally through a middle fossa bony ridge, and curves over the previous upper-greater wing of the sphenoid, where it in a variable point is divided into frontal and parietal branches. The complex sequence of the MMA development gives many opportunities for variant anatomy. In a Caucasian cadaver skull of an approximately 35-year-old individual belonging to the didactical collection of the Laboratory of Human Anatomy at the University of Santa Cruz do Sul, Brazil, it was noted that the right foramen spinosum has an abnormal shape. In this report, we discuss an abnormality of the foramen spinosum due to a variation in the trajectory of the MMA. Thus, the present study shall be important for health sciences and those who have some interest in pathologies associated with the MMA.

Keywords: anatomic variation; foramen ovale; foramen spinosum; middle meningeal artery.

Fig. 1

Internal view of the skull (A) highlighting (B) the region of the foramen spinosum (B, solid arrow) in relation to the foramen ovale (B, dotted ellipse). Note the presence of calcification of the clinoid processes above (A, asterisks), as well as the existence of an unusual foramen (B, dotted arrow) near the foramen ovale. (a) Hypophyseal fossa. (b) Foramen magnum. (c) Groove of the middle meningeal artery. (d) Foramen lacerum.