title: Superior and anterior inferior cerebellar arteries and their relationship with cerebello-pontine angle cranial nerves revisited in the light of cranial cephalometric indexes: a cadaveric study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim was to clarify the anatomical features of the superior and anterior     inferior cerebellar arteries in relation to the trigeminal nerve and     acoustic-facial complex and to the bony structures of the skull in a sample of     male Iranian cadavers.
  
  
  METHODS
  Bilateral dissections,     calvariectomy, and brain evacuation were performed on 31 adult human fresh     brains and skull bases to assess the neurovascular associations, and skull base     morphometry. Equations were defined to estimate posterior fossa volume and the     relationships between bony and neurovascular elements.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eight SCAs were     duplicated from origin. There were 9 cases of SCA-trigeminal contacts, which     were at the root entry zone in 7. Mean distance from the origin of AICA to the     vertebrobasilar junction was 11.80 mm, while 79% of AICAs originated from the     lower half of the BA. This was significantly associated with "posterior     fossa funneling" and "basilar narrowing" indexes. In most     cases AICA crossed the acoustic-facial complex and coursed between neural     bundles (48.3%). The AICA reached or entered the internal acoustic canal in     22.6% of cases and was medial to porous in 77.4%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We documented     anatomical variations of the superior and anterior inferior cerebellar arteries     along with some cephalometric equations with relevant neurovascular anatomy in     Iranian cadavers.
authors.affiliation: Imam Khomeini Hospital, Department of Neurosurgery, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
authors.forename: Zohreh
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Habibi
authors.forename: Ali Tayebi
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Meybodi
authors.forename: Farid
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Maleki
authors.forename: Seyed
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tabatabai
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000886:Anthropometry / Q000379:methods; D001488:Basilar Artery / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000601:surgery; D002102:Cadaver; D002530:Cerebellopontine Angle / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000601:surgery; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000098:blood supply; D035301:Cranial Fossa, Middle / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000601:surgery; D003388:Cranial Fossa, Posterior / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000601:surgery; D004210:Dissection / Q000379:methods; D005154:Facial Nerve / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000601:surgery; D014644:Genetic Variation / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008955:Models, Cardiovascular; D008959:Models, Neurological; D010579:Petrous Bone / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000601:surgery; D012016:Reference Values; D019291:Skull Base / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000601:surgery; D014276:Trigeminal Nerve / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000601:surgery; D000159:Vestibulocochlear Nerve / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000601:surgery; D055815:Young Adult