title: Is there a dural wall between the cavernous sinus and the pituitary fossa? Anatomical and MRI findings.
abstract: We compared MRI studies of the sellar area and embryological and adult histological studies of the cavernous sinuses and pituitary fossa. MRI studies were performed in 50 normal subjects with coronal sections using a fast inversion-recovery sequence to demonstrate the dural walls of the cavernous sinus and pituitary fossa. With this sequence, dura mater appears as a high-signal linear structure. The lateral and superior walls of the cavernous sinus was easily identified on all studies, but demonstration of a dural wall separating the cavernous sinus from the pituitary fossa was not possible. These results correlated well with embryological and adult histological studies obtained from 14 specimens. The absence of a strong separation between the pituitary fossa and the cavernous sinus explains the high incidence of extension of pituitary tumours to the cavernous sinuses and vice versa.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology 2, University Hospital of Strasbourg, Hôpital de Hautepierre, France.
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Dietemann
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kehrli
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Maillot
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Diniz
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Reis
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Neugroschl
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Vinclair
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002426:Cavernous Sinus / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000196:embryology; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D010902:Pituitary Gland / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000196:embryology; D012658:Sella Turcica / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000196:embryology