T1 L2 Skull & cranial cavity

Question 1

What are the 5 layers of the scalp?

Answer 1

Skin
Connective tissue (dense)
Aponeurotic layer
Loose connective tissue
Pericranium

Question 2

What nerves innervate the scalp?

Answer 2

Trigeminal nerves

Spinal cutaneous nerves

Question 3

What are the 2 sections of the skull?

Answer 3

Neurocranium

Viscerocranium

Question 4

How many bones are in the neurocranium?

Answer 4

8

Question 5

What are the bones making up the neurocranium?

Answer 5

Occipital
Temporal x 2
Parietal x 2
Sphenoid
Ethmoid
Frontal

Question 6

What are the bones making up the viscerocranium?

Answer 6

Nasal conchae x 2
Nasal bones x 2
Maxilla x 2
Palatine x 2
Zygomatic x 2
Lacrimal x 2
Vomer
Mandible

Question 7

What is the role of the foramina?

Answer 7

Permits nerves & blood vessels to enter of exit cranial cavity

Question 8

What is the base of the skull divided into?

Answer 8

Anterior cranial fossa
Middle cranial fossa
Posterior cranial fossa

Question 9

Give some examples of foramina

Answer 9

Cribiform plate
Optic canal
Superior orbital fissure
Foramen rotundum
Foramen ovale
Foramen spinosum
Internal acoustic meatus
Stylomastoid foramen
Foramen lacerum
Jugular foramen
Hypoglossal canal
Foramen magnum

Question 10

What are the 3 meninges layers?

Answer 10

Dura mater
Arachnoid mater
Pia mater

Question 11

What is the role of the meninges?

Answer 11

Protection
Support network for blood vessels
Forms a fluid-filled cavity to cushion & nourish the brain

Question 12

What are the 2 layers of dura mater?

Answer 12

Endosteal layer

Meningeal layer

Question 13

Where is the meningeal layer found?

Answer 13

Around the brain & spinal cord

Question 14

Where is the endosteal layer found?

Answer 14

Only lines the skull

Question 15

What is the nerve supply to the dura mater?

Answer 15

Cranial nerve V
Cranial nerve X
C1-3
Sympathetic

Question 16

What is the blood supply to the dura mater?

Answer 16

Middle meningeal artery

Question 17

What is the purpose of folds in the meningeal dura mater?

Answer 17

Prevent / restrict movement of the brain

Question 18

What does the falx cerebri separate?

Answer 18

Cerebral hemispheres

Question 19

What does the tentorium cerebelli separate?

Answer 19

Cerebellar hemispheres from cerebral hemispheres

Question 20

What does the falx cerebelli separate?

Answer 20

Cerebellar hemispheres

Question 21

What is the anatomical basis of a headache?

Answer 21

The dura is sensitive to stretching

Question 22

What can lead to an extradural (epidural) haematoma?

Answer 22

Damage to the middle meningeal artery

Question 23

What causes a tentorial herniation?

Answer 23

A space occupying lesion causing herniation of the temporal lobe

Question 24

Which meningeal layer is avascular?

Answer 24

Arachnoid mater

Question 25

Describe the arachnoid mater

Answer 25

Thin avascular layer | Loosely applied with projections

Question 26

Where is the CSF found in the subarachnoid space produced?

Answer 26

By choroid plexus in brain ventricles

Question 27

What is the aim of the CSF?

Answer 27

It provides buoyancy to the brain to protect it from mechanical forces such as a blow to the skull

Question 28

Describe the Pia mater

Answer 28

Very delicate vascular membrane Gives brain a shiny coating The cerebral arteries enter the brain carrying a sheath of Pia mater with them

Question 29

What is leptomeningitis?

Answer 29

Infection & inflammation in the arachnoid & Pia mater Infection may enter the subarachnoid space & into the blood = septicaemia

Question 30

What are dural sinuses?

Answer 30

Sinuses that sit between the dural folds | Contain drained blood & CSF from the brain via cerebral veins

Question 31

Describe the properties of the dural sinus

Answer 31

Thick walled endothelium No valves No smooth muscles

Question 32

What do the dural sinuses drain into?

Answer 32

The internal jugular vein

Question 33

What are the 2 main arteries supplying the brain?

Answer 33

The internal carotid artery | Vertebral artery

Question 34

What are the 2 terminal branches inside the skull?

Answer 34

The anterior cerebral artery | The middle cerebral artery

Question 35

What happens to the vertebral arteries?

Answer 35

They pass within the cervical vertebrae and enter the foramen magnum where they unite to form the basilar artery.

Question 36

What forms the circle of Willis?

Answer 36

Anastomoses of the 2 internal carotid & 2 vertebral arteries

Question 37

What does the anterior cerebral artery supply?

Answer 37

The medial & superior surfaces of the brain & frontal pole

Question 38

What does the middle cerebral artery supply?

Answer 38

The lateral surfaces & temporal pole

Question 39

What does the posterior cerebral artery supply?

Answer 39

The inferior surfaces & occipital pole

Question 40

Which layer of the meninges is avascular & loosely applied?

Answer 40

The arachnoid layer