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The forgotten foramina: a study of the anterior cribriform plate

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Abstract

Purpose

The olfactory cleft has garnered interest since the advent of endoscopic skull base surgery. Its precise anatomy, however, is still partially unknown. According to Rouvière, an “ethmoidal foramen” is located in its antero-medial part and contains a process of the dura mater. In a more lateral and anterior location, a second foramen, the “cribroethmoidal foramen”, contains the anterior ethmoidal nerve. The aim of this study was to verify the existence of these elements and to establish landmarks for surgery.

Methods

We performed an anatomical and histological study of eight olfactory clefts in four cadavers using both endonasal endoscopic and endocranial dissection.

Results

An ethmoidal and a cribroethmoidal foramen were found in, respectively, 100 and 75 % of cases. Their mean length was, respectively, 4.1 and 1.8 mm. They were located, respectively, in mean at 5.3 and 5.8 mm from the anterior ethmoidal artery.

Conclusion

Our anatomical study demonstrates the existence of both foramina. The ethmoidal foramen clearly represents an area of least resistance in the anterior part of the olfactory cleft, which could predispose to anterior skull base cerebrospinal fluid leaks and meningoceles.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank M. Mickael Guyard and Ms. Isabelle Leclerc for their technical support, and Pr. M. Tschabitscher, and Pr. P. Herman for their comments.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Ethical standards

The authors declare that the experiments comply with the currents French laws.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Head and Neck Surgery, CHU de Caen, Avenue de la Côte de Nacre, Caen Cedex 9, 14033, France

    Vincent Patron, Julie Berkaoui, Sylvain Moreau & Martin Hitier

  2. Department of Head and Neck Surgery, CHU de Nancy, Nancy, 54035, France

    Roger Jankowski

  3. Department of Pathology, CHU de Caen, Caen, 14033, France

    Emmanuelle Lechapt-Zalcman

  4. Department of Anatomy, UNICAEN, Caen, 14032, France

    Sylvain Moreau & Martin Hitier

  5. INSERM U 1075 COMETE, Caen, 14032, France

    Martin Hitier

Authors
  1. Vincent Patron
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  2. Julie Berkaoui
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  3. Roger Jankowski
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  4. Emmanuelle Lechapt-Zalcman
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  5. Sylvain Moreau
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  6. Martin Hitier
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Vincent Patron.

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Patron, V., Berkaoui, J., Jankowski, R. et al. The forgotten foramina: a study of the anterior cribriform plate. Surg Radiol Anat 37, 835–840 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-015-1471-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-015-1471-2

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