| Squamous part of temporal bone | |
|---|---|
 Temporal bone at birth. Inner aspect. | |
 Left temporal bone. Outer surface. (Squamous part is visible at top left.) | |
| Details | |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | pars squamosa ossis temporalis; squama temporalis |
| TA98 | A02.1.06.061 |
| TA2 | 702 |
| FMA | 52883 |
| Anatomical terms of bone | |
The squamous part of temporal bone, or temporal squama, forms the front and upper part of the temporal bone, and is scale-like, thin, and translucent.
Its outer surface is smooth and convex; it affords attachment to the temporal muscle, and forms part of the temporal fossa; on its hinder part is a vertical groove for the middle temporal artery. A curved line, the temporal line, or supramastoid crest, runs backward and upward across its posterior part; it serves for the attachment of the temporal fascia, and limits the origin of the temporalis muscle. The boundary between the squamous part and the mastoid portion of the bone, as indicated by traces of the original suture, lies about 1 cm. below this line.
Projecting from the lower part of the squamous part is a long, arched process, the zygomatic process . This process is at first directed lateralward, its two surfaces looking upward and downward; it then appears as if twisted inward upon itself, and runs forward, its surfaces now looking medialward and lateralward. The superior border is long, thin, and sharp, and serves for the attachment of the temporal fascia; the inferior, short, thick, and arched, has attached to it some fibers of the masseter. The lateral surface is convex and subcutaneous; the medial is concave, and affords attachment to the masseter. The anterior end is deeply serrated and articulates with the zygomatic bone. The posterior end is connected to the squamous part by two roots, the anterior and posterior roots. The posterior root, a prolongation of the upper border, is strongly marked; it runs backward above the external auditory meatus, and is continuous with the temporal line. The anterior root, continuous with the lower border, is short but broad and strong; it is directed medialward and ends in a rounded eminence, the articular tubercle (eminentia articularis).
This tubercle forms the front boundary of the mandibular fossa, and in the fresh state is covered with cartilage. In front of the articular tubercle is a small triangular area which assists in forming the infratemporal fossa; this area is separated from the outer surface of the squamous part by a ridge which is continuous behind with the anterior root of the zygomatic process, and in front, in the articulated skull, with the infratemporal crest on the great wing of the sphenoid. Between the posterior wall of the external acoustic meatus and the posterior root of the zygomatic process is the area called the suprameatal triangle (Macewen), or mastoid fossa, through which an instrument may be pushed into the tympanic antrum.
At the junction of the anterior root with the zygomatic process is a projection for the attachment of the temporomandibular ligament; and behind the anterior root is an oval depression, forming part of the mandibular fossa, for the reception of the condyle of the mandible. The mandibular fossa (glenoid fossa) is bounded, in front, by the articular tubercle; behind, by the tympanic part of the bone, which separates it from the external acoustic meatus; it is divided into two parts by a narrow slit, the petrotympanic fissure (Glaserian fissure). The anterior part, formed by the squamous part, is smooth, covered in the fresh state with cartilage, and articulates with the condyle of the mandible. Behind this part of the fossa is a small conical eminence; this is the representative of a prominent tubercle which, in some mammals, descends behind the condyle of the mandible, and prevents its backward displacement. The posterior part of the mandibular fossa, formed by the tympanic part of the bone, is non-articular, and sometimes lodges a portion of the parotid gland.
The petrotympanic fissure leads into the middle ear or tympanic cavity; it lodges the anterior process of the malleus, and transmits the tympanic branch of the internal maxillary artery. The chorda tympani nerve passes through a canal (canal of Huguier), separated from the anterior edge of the petrotympanic fissure by a thin scale of bone and situated on the lateral side of the auditory tube, in the retiring angle between the squamous part and the petrous portion of the temporal bone.
The internal surface of the squamous part is concave; it presents depressions corresponding to the convolutions of the temporal lobe of the brain, and grooves for the branches of the middle meningeal vessels.
The superior border is thin, and bevelled at the expense of the internal table, so as to overlap the squamous border of the parietal bone, forming with it the squamosal suture. Posteriorly, the superior border forms an angle, the parietal notch, with the mastoid portion of the bone.
The antero-inferior border is thick, serrated, and bevelled at the expense of the inner table above and of the outer below, for articulation with the great wing of the sphenoid.
In anatomy, the temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are the two joints connecting the jawbone to the skull. It is a bilateral synovial articulation between the temporal bone of the skull above and the mandible below; it is from these bones that its name is derived. The joints are unique in their bilateral function, being connected via the mandible.
Articles related to anatomy include:
In the human skull, the zygomatic bone, also called cheekbone or malar bone, is a paired irregular bone, situated at the upper and lateral part of the face and forming part of the lateral wall and floor of the orbit, of the temporal fossa and the infratemporal fossa. It presents a malar and a temporal surface; four processes, and four borders.
The temporal bones are situated at the sides and base of the skull, and lateral to the temporal lobes of the cerebral cortex.
In anatomy, the zygomatic arch, or cheek bone, is a part of the skull formed by the zygomatic process of the temporal bone and the temporal process of the zygomatic bone, the two being united by an oblique suture ; the tendon of the temporal muscle passes medial to the arch, to gain insertion into the coronoid process of the mandible (jawbone).
The tympanic cavity is a small cavity surrounding the bones of the middle ear. Within it sit the ossicles, three small bones that transmit vibrations used in the detection of sound.
The condyloid process or condylar process is the process on the human and other mammalian species' mandibles that ends in a condyle, the mandibular condyle. It is thicker than the coronoid process of the mandible and consists of two portions: the condyle and the constricted portion which supports it, the neck.
The greater wing of the sphenoid bone, or alisphenoid, is a bony process of the sphenoid bone, positioned in the skull behind each eye. There is one on each side, extending from the side of the body of the sphenoid and curving upward, laterally, and backward.
The mastoid part of the temporal bone is the posterior (back) part of the temporal bone, one of the bones of the skull. Its rough surface gives attachment to various muscles and it has openings for blood vessels. From its borders, the mastoid part articulates with two other bones.
The petrous part of the temporal bone is pyramid-shaped and is wedged in at the base of the skull between the sphenoid and occipital bones. Directed medially, forward, and a little upward, it presents a base, an apex, three surfaces, and three angles, and houses in its interior, the components of the inner ear. The petrous portion is among the most basal elements of the skull and forms part of the endocranium. Petrous comes from the Latin word petrosus, meaning "stone-like, hard". It is one of the densest bones in the body. In other mammals, it is a separate bone, the petrosal bone.
The tympanic part of the temporal bone is a curved plate of bone lying below the squamous part of the temporal bone, in front of the mastoid process, and surrounding the external part of the ear canal.
The lateral parts of the occipital bone are situated at the sides of the foramen magnum; on their under surfaces are the condyles for articulation with the superior facets of the atlas.
The middle cranial fossa is formed by the sphenoid bones, and the temporal bones. It lodges the temporal lobes, and the pituitary gland. It is deeper than the anterior cranial fossa, is narrow medially and widens laterally to the sides of the skull. It is separated from the posterior cranial fossa by the clivus and the petrous crest.
The infratemporal fossa is an irregularly shaped cavity that is a part of the skull. It is situated below and medial to the zygomatic arch. It is not fully enclosed by bone in all directions. It contains superficial muscles, including the lower part of the temporalis muscle, the lateral pterygoid muscle, and the medial pterygoid muscle. It also contains important blood vessels such as the middle meningeal artery, the pterygoid plexus, and the retromandibular vein, and nerves such as the mandibular nerve (CN V3) and its branches.
The mandibular fossa, also known as the glenoid fossa in some dental literature, is the depression in the temporal bone that articulates with the mandible.
The articular tubercle is a bony eminence on the temporal bone in the skull. It is a rounded eminence of the anterior root of the posterior end of the outer surface of the squama temporalis. This tubercle forms the front boundary of the mandibular fossa, and in the fresh state is covered with cartilage.
The petrotympanic fissure is a fissure in the temporal bone that runs from the temporomandibular joint to the tympanic cavity.
The zygomatic processes are three processes (protrusions) from other bones of the skull which each articulate with the zygomatic bone. The three processes are:
The mastoid cells are air-filled cavities within the mastoid process of the temporal bone of the cranium. The mastoid cells are a form of skeletal pneumaticity. Infection in these cells is called mastoiditis.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to human anatomy:
This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 139 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)
