[Minimally invasive surgery of the anterior skull base: transorbital approaches]

Abstract

Minimally invasive approaches are becoming increasingly popular to access the anterior skull base. With interdisciplanary cooperation, endonasal endoscopic in particular approaches have seen an impressive expansion of indications over the past decades. The more recently described transorbital approaches represent minimally invasive alternatives with a differing spectrum of access corridors. The purpose of the present paper is to discuss transorbital approaches to the anterior skull base in the light of the current literature.The transorbital approaches allow excellent exposure of difficult to reach areas like the the anterior and posterior wall of the frontal sinus; working angles may be more favorable and the paranasal sinus system can be preserved while exposing the base of skull. Because of their minimal morbidity and the cosmetically excellent results, the transorbital approaches represent an important addition to established endonasal endoscopic and open approaches to the anterior skull base. Their execution requires an interdisciplinary team approach.