A morphometric analysis of the foramen magnum region as it relates to the transcondylar approach

Abstract

The occipital condyle is frequently being drilled to expose lesions ventral to the brainstem. From our study, it is evident that the occipital condyle can be safely drilled for a distance of 12 mms from the posterior margin before encountering the hypoglossal canal. In 20% of the skulls the occipital condyle protrudes significantly into the foramen magnum. Wide and sagittally inclined occipital condyles, medially protruberant occipital condyles along with a foramen magnum index of more than 1.2 will require much more extensive bony resection than otherwise. With the availability of recent imaging techniques, it is possible to anticipate the extent of bony resection required in an individual case by using the above mentioned morphometric features.

Characterization of Occipital Condyle and Comparison of its Dimensions with Head and Foramen Magnum Circumferences in Dry Skulls of Iran

“…The occipital condyles (OC) of the skull are located with the superior articular facets of the atlas vertebra and form an important junction between the cranium and the vertebral column (Muthukumar et al, 2005;Naderi et al, 2005).…”

Morphometric Analysis Related to the Transcondylar Approach in Dry Skulls and Computed Tomography

“…The topographic relationship between a lesion and neurovascular structures is the most important characteristic when selecting the appropriate surgical procedure, and the identification of anatomical variations is crucial in the prior planning of neurosurgery (George et al, 1988;Kratimenos & Crocard, 1993;Babu et al, 1994;Wen et al, 1997;Dowd et al, 1999;Rothon, 2000,;Nanda et al, 2002;Muthukumar et al, 2005;Barut et al, 2009).…”

Variability of Human Foramen Magnum Size

“…Anat Rec, 292:1713Rec, 292: -1719Rec, 292: , 2009. V V C 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.Key words: anthropology; forensic medicine; osteometry; Pleistocene; secular trend; skull baseSpinal osteometry is a versatile and important method in many research fields including anthropology and basic medical sciences (Saillant, 1976;Krag et al, 1988;Schaeffer, 1999;Mitra et al, 2002;Ahern, 2005;Muthukumar et al, 2005). The foramen magnum, as a transition zone between spine and skull, plays an important role as a landmark because of its close relationship to key structures such as the brain and the spinal cord.…”

“…The foramen magnum, as a transition zone between spine and skull, plays an important role as a landmark because of its close relationship to key structures such as the brain and the spinal cord. There is a small heterogeneous group of anthropological and medical papers focusing on the foramen magnum: simple morphometric analysis of foramen magnum dimensions (Sendemir et al, 1994), foramen magnum size as a part of human occipital bone biometry (Olivier, 1975), its size relative to sex (Catalina-Herrera, 1987;Uysal et al, 2005), its relationship to the intra-cranial volume (Acer et al, 2006), its relationship to stature (Röthig, 1971), the use of the foramen magnum as an identification mark for fire victims (Holland, 1989), the inter-and intra-variability of the foramen magnum position in different species (Ahern, 2005), foramen magnum-carotid foramina relationship as a probable species diagnostic mark (Schaeffer, 1999), and the foramen magnum region in relation to surgical approaches (Muthukumar et al, 2005).Despite its anatomical and clinical relevance, there is still a lack of basic osteometric studies. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, no study has ever…”