Fossa navicularis magna

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Fosas navicularis magna (red arrow) on mid-sagittal computed tomography Fossa navicularis magna CT.png
Fosas navicularis magna (red arrow) on mid-sagittal computed tomography

Fossa navicularis magna (also known as pharyngeal fossa or phyaryngeal fovela) is a variant bony depression found at the midline of the occipital part of clivus. This fossa was first described by Tourtual. [1] Its prevalence ranges from 0.9 to 5.3%. [2]

Contents

Structure

Fossa navicularis magna is located on the anterior surface or pharyngeal surface of the clivus. Its position when present is between the spheno-occipital synchondrosis and the foramen magnum. Size of this fossa varies considerably and its depth ranges from 3.49 to 4.94 mm. [3] A histological study reported the presence of loose connective tissue containing collagen and elastic fibers within the fossa navicularis magna. [4]

Development

Two theories have been proposed to explain the formation of fossa navicularis magna. It is believed that the fossa is formed as a remnant of the notochord or residue of the channels for emissary veins. [5]

Clinical significance

Different pathologies were found associated with fossa navicularis magna including cancers, adenoid hypertrophy, ecchordosis physaliphora, Tornwaldt cyst and Rathke cleft cyst. [6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Tourtual, Caspar Theobald; Royal College of Surgeons of England (1846). Neue Untersuchungen über den Bau des menschlichen Schlund- und Kehlkopfes : mit vergleichend anatomischen Bemerkungen. Royal College of Surgeons of England. Leipzig : Otto Wigand.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  2. ↑ Sheikh, Sarvenaz; Iwanaga, Joe; Rostad, Steven; Rustagi, Tarush; Oskouian, Rod J.; Tubbs, R. Shane (2017-05-31). "The First Histological Analysis of the Tissues Lining the Fossa Navicularis: Insights to its Etiology". Cureus. 9 (5): e1299. doi: 10.7759/cureus.1299 . ISSN   2168-8184. PMC   5493477 . PMID   28680787.
  3. ↑ Bayrak, Seval; Göller Bulut, Duygu; Orhan, Kaan (2019-04-01). "Prevalence of anatomical variants in the clivus: fossa navicularis magna, canalis basilaris medianus, and craniopharyngeal canal" . Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy. 41 (4): 477–483. doi:10.1007/s00276-019-02200-3. ISSN   1279-8517. PMID   30725217. S2CID   59606371.
  4. ↑ Alalade, Andrew F.; Briganti, Giovanni; Mckenzie, Jo-Lyn; Gandhi, Mitesh; Amato, Damian; Panizza, Benedict J.; Bowman, James (2018-11-01). "Fossa navicularis in a pediatric patient: anatomical skull base variant with clinical implications". Journal of Neurosurgery: Pediatrics. 22 (5): 523–527. doi: 10.3171/2018.5.PEDS18157 . ISSN   1933-0715. PMID   30052117. S2CID   207716490.
  5. ↑ Adanir, Saliha S.; Bahşi, Ilhan; Kervancioğlu, Piraye; Orhan, Mustafa; Aslan Öztürk, Elif M.; Yalçin, Eda D.; Topsakal, Vedat (2022). "Radiologic Evaluation of the Fossa Navicularis on Dry Skull: A Comparative CBCT Study" . Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. 34 (3): 1085–1088. doi:10.1097/SCS.0000000000009069. ISSN   1049-2275. PMID   36217219. S2CID   252817976.
  6. ↑ Murjani, Bhavana; Bhosale, Rohini; Ramaswami, Easwaran; Kadam, Sonali; Ramchandani, Amit (2021). "Anatomical variations of clivus: a descriptive anatomical study". Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy. 43 (6): 945–951. doi:10.1007/s00276-021-02686-w. ISSN   1279-8517. PMID   33483831. S2CID   231682612.
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