title: Morphometry and CT measurements of useful bony landmarks of skull base.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Aim of this study was to determine the distance between Henle's spine (HS) on the temporal bone to the clinically important bony landmarks on the dry skulls that will act as a guide in various surgical procedures on skull base. Distances from the head of malleus (HOM) to surgically relevant landmarks were also studied on CT images.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-nine adult preserved dry skulls were studied bilaterally. The parapetrosal triangle bounded by spinopterygoidal, bispinal and the midsagittal lines was identified. The location of the HS and its distance from the various important anatomical structures were measured. In addition, five CT images, where distances from the HOM to various anatomical landmarks were measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean and range of distances from the HS to various important anatomical landmarks on the spinopterygoidal line, bispinal line and in the parapetrosal triangle were tabulated. The mean and range of CT-based measurements of distances from HOM to other anatomical landmarks were also noted.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The knowledge of unvarying relationship of the HS and the HOM to the various structures of the skull would assume significance while planning surgeries around the temporal bone by guiding the direction and degree of bone removal. Statistical differences between the two genders showed significant difference only in the distance between the HS to the medial margin of the external orifice of carotid canal. Therefore, these landmarks can also be applied as references for various surgeries of middle cranial fossa, as well as transpetrosal and transmastoid approaches.
authors: Department of Anatomy, Kasturba Medical College, Madhav Nagar, Manipal, Karnataka, India. biswabina@yahoo.co.in
authors: Biswabina
authors: B
authors: Ray
authors: K V
authors: KV
authors: Rajagopal
authors: T
authors: T
authors: Rajesh
authors: B M V
authors: BM
authors: Gayathri
authors: A S
authors: AS
authors: D'Souza
authors: J V
authors: JV
authors: Swarnashri
authors: Alok
authors: A
authors: Saxena
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019291:Skull Base / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D055815:Young Adult