title: Imaging of the cavernous sinus lesions.
abstract: This educational paper reviews the normal anatomy of the cavernous sinus (CS) and the imaging findings of common and uncommon lesions of this region. CS lesions may arise from different components of the CS or from adjacent structures and spaces. They can be classified as tumoral, inflammatory/infectious, vascular and congenital. Tumoral lesions include benign (meningiomas, pituitary adenomas, schwannomas) and malignant neoplasms (chondrosarcomas, chordomas, nasopharyngeal carcinomas, leukemia, metastases). Inflammatory/infectious conditions comprise: Tolosa Hunt, abscess, Lemierre syndrome and thrombophlebitis. Vascular lesions include: hemangiomas, carotido-cavernous fistula, aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations. Congenital conditions include the epidermoid cyst, dermoid cyst and fatty deposits. Although imaging features of non-vascular CS diseases are most often non-specific, careful analysis of the adjacent structures suggests the correct diagnosis. In vascular pathology, characteristic MR imaging findings are observed.
authors.affiliation: Department of radiology, Geneva university hospitals, rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211 Genève 14, Switzerland. Electronic address: mohamed.a.korchi@hcuge.ch.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Korchi
authors.affiliation: Department of neuroradiology, Geneva university hospitals, rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211 Genève 14, Switzerland.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cuvinciuc
authors.affiliation: Department of radiology, Geneva university hospitals, rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211 Genève 14, Switzerland.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Caetano
authors.affiliation: Department of radiology, Geneva university hospitals, rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211 Genève 14, Switzerland.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.affiliation: Department of neuroradiology, Geneva university hospitals, rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211 Genève 14, Switzerland.
authors.forename: K O
authors.initials: KO
authors.lastname: Lovblad
authors.affiliation: Department of neuroradiology, Geneva university hospitals, rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211 Genève 14, Switzerland.
authors.forename: M I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Vargas
mesh_terms: D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002426:Cavernous Sinus / Q000473:pathology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D012016:Reference Values; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Cavernous sinus; Imaging; Inflammatory; Neoplasm; Vascular