The occipital sinus is the smallest of the

dural venous sinuses The dural venous sinuses (also called dural sinuses, cerebral sinuses, or cranial sinuses) are venous channels found between the endosteal and meningeal layers of dura mater in the brain. They receive blood from the cerebral veins, receive cere ...

. It is usually unpaired, and is sometimes altogether absent. It is situated in the attached margin of the

falx cerebelli The falx cerebelli is a small sickle-shaped fold of dura mater projecting forwards into the posterior cerebellar notch as well as projecting into the vallecula of the cerebellum between the two cerebellar hemispheres. The name comes from two ...

. It commences near the

foramen magnum The foramen magnum ( la, great hole) is a large, oval-shaped opening in the occipital bone of the skull. It is one of the several oval or circular openings (foramina) in the base of the skull. The spinal cord, an extension of the medulla oblon ...

, and ends by draining into the

confluence of sinuses The confluence of sinuses (Latin: confluens sinuum), torcular Herophili, or torcula is the connecting point of the superior sagittal sinus, straight sinus, and occipital sinus. It is below the internal occipital protuberance of the skull. It dr ...

. Occipital sinuses were discovered by

Guichard Joseph Duverney Joseph Guichard Duverney or Joseph-Guichard Du Verney (5 August 1648 – 10 September 1730) was a French anatomist known for his work in comparative anatomy and for his treatise on the ear. The fracture of the iliac wing of the pelvis is some ...

Anatomy

The occipital sinus is present in around 65% of individuals. It is usually single, but occasionally paired. It is situated in the attached margin of the

Course

The occipital sinus commences around the margin of the

by several small venous channels (one of which joins the terminal part of the

sigmoid sinus The sigmoid sinuses (sigma- or s-shaped hollow curve), also known as the , are venous sinuses within the skull that receive blood from posterior dural venous sinus veins. Structure The sigmoid sinus is a dural venous sinus situated within the du ...

). It terminates by draining into the

confluence of the sinuses The confluence of sinuses (Latin: confluens sinuum), torcular Herophili, or torcula is the connecting point of the superior sagittal sinus, straight sinus, and occipital sinus. It is below the internal occipital protuberance of the skull. It d ...

Communications

The occipital sinus communicates with the

marginal sinus Marginal may refer to: * ''Marginal'' (album), the third album of the Belgian rock band Dead Man Ray, released in 2001 * ''Marginal'' (manga) * '' El Marginal'', Argentine TV series * Marginal seat or marginal constituency or marginal, in polit ...

, and posterior internal vertebral venous plexuses.

Additional images

File:Gray193.png, Base of the skull. Upper surface.

References

{{Authority control Veins of the head and neck