Foramina of alisphenoid- A morphological and morphometric study in an adult dry skull of South Indian population

• Author Details:   
• Mamatha Y ^*
• Thilak Nidhi Y. T

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Introduction: The skull base presents various foramens establishing communications between extracranial and intracranial structures. The alisphenoid presents common foramen like Foramen ovale [FO] and Foramen Rotundum [FR] and accessories foramens like emissary sphenoidal foramens/foramen Vesalius, concerned with various advanced surgical procedures involving the middle cranial fossa.
Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine exact range of measurements of FO and FS and also to determine the incidence of accessory foramina in alispehnoid.
Materials and Methods: The present research study was conducted on One hundred (100) dry adult skulls, and various parameters like length and width were measured using digital vernier caliper and morphological features like shape, absence or any other abnormalities of foramen were observed. The observed data was tabulated and analyzed statistically using SPSS Software Version 20.
Results: In our study, mean width of FO was with mean of 3.96±0.74 mm and 4.0±0.77, length was 7.2±0.99 mm and 7.15±0.88mm, FS length mean was 2.71±0.58 mm and 2.67±0.50 mm, width mean was 1.93±0.45mm and 1.98±0.47mm on right and left side respectively. Morphological variants shape like oval (91%), round (9%) and it was oval in 89% and round in 11% on right side and left side of FO respectively. FS was round shaped in 100% of cases.
Conclusion: The present study provides baseline data of normal and variant morphological and morphometric dimensions of various foramens affecting alisphenoid, the area which have got greater clinical implications.

Keywords: Foramen, Spinosum, Ovale, Emissary, Vesalius, Alisphenoid.