Publication Date

2018

Journal Title

Insights Imaging

Abstract

© 2018, The Author(s). Abstract: Meckel’s cave is a dural recess in the posteromedial portion of the middle cranial fossa that acts as a conduit for the trigeminal nerve between the prepontine cistern and the cavernous sinus, and houses the Gasserian ganglion and proximal rootlets of the trigeminal nerve. It serves as a major pathway in perineural spread of pathologies such as head and neck neoplasms, automatically upstaging tumours, and is a key structure to assess in cases of trigeminal neuralgia. The purpose of this pictorial review is threefold: (1) to review the normal anatomy of Meckel’s cave; (2) to describe imaging findings that identify disease involving Meckel’s cave; (3) to present case examples of trigeminal and non-trigeminal processes affecting Meckel’s cave. Teaching points: • Meckel’s cave contains the trigeminal nerve between prepontine cistern and cavernous sinus. • Assessment is essential for perineural spread of disease and trigeminal neuralgia. • Key imaging: neural enhancement, enlargement, perineural fat/CSF effacement, skull base foraminal changes.

Volume Number

9

Issue Number

4

Pages

499 - 510

Document Type

Article

Status

Faculty

Facility

School of Medicine

Primary Department

Radiology

PMID

29671218

DOI

10.1007/s13244-018-0604-7


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Radiology Commons

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