The dorsum sellae is part of the
sphenoid bone
The sphenoid bone is an unpaired bone of the neurocranium. It is situated in the middle of the skull towards the front, in front of the basilar part of occipital bone, basilar part of the occipital bone. The sphenoid bone is one of the seven bones ...
in the
skull
The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...
. Together with the
basilar part of the occipital bone it forms the
clivus.
In the sphenoid bone, the anterior boundary of the
sella turcica
The sella turcica (Latin for 'Turkish saddle') is a saddle-shaped depression in the body of the sphenoid bone of the human skull and of the skulls of other hominids including chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans. It serves as a cephalometric la ...
is completed by two small eminences, one on either side, called the
middle clinoid processes
The anterior boundary of the sella turcica is completed by two small eminences, one on either side, called the middle clinoid processes. It is found lateral to the sella turcica.
Etymology
Clinoid likely comes from the Greek root ''klinein'' or ...
, while the posterior boundary is formed by a square-shaped plate of bone, the dorsum sellae, ending at its superior angles in two
tubercles
In anatomy, a tubercle (literally 'small tuber', Latin for 'lump') is any round nodule, small eminence, or warty outgrowth found on external or internal organs of a plant or an animal.
In plants
A tubercle is generally a wart-like projection ...
, the
posterior clinoid processes
In the sphenoid bone, the anterior boundary of the sella turcica is completed by two small eminences, one on either side, called the anterior clinoid processes, while the posterior boundary is formed by a square-shaped plate of bone, the dorsum s ...
, the size and form of which vary considerably in different individuals.
Additional images
File:Gray569.png, Tentorium cerebelli from above.
File:Slide2iiii.JPG, Dorsum sellae
References
External links
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Bones of the head and neck
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