A 46 year old man sustains a spider bite on his upper eyelid, and an infection develops. The physician is very concerned about spread of the infection to the dural venous sinuses of the brain emissary veins. With which of the following dural venous sinuses does the superior ophthalmic vein directly communicate?
The anterior continuation of the cavernous sinus, the superior ophthalmic vein, passes through the superior orbital fissure to enter the orbit. Veins of the face communicate with the superior ophthalmic vein. Because of the absence of valves in emissary veins, venous flow may occur in either direction. Cutaneous infections may be carried into the cavernous sinus and result in a cavernous sinus infection which may lead to an infected cavernous sinus thrombosis. The cavernous sinus is lateral to the pituitary gland and contains poions of cranial nerves III, IV, V1, V2 and VI, and the internal carotid aery.The occipital sinus is at the base of the falx cerebelli in the posterior cranial fossa. It drains into the confluence of sinuses.The sigmoid sinus is the anterior continuation of the transverse sinus in the middle cranial fossa. The sigmoid sinus passes through the jugular foramen and drains into the internal jugular vein.The superior petrosal sinus is at the apex of the petrous poion of the temporal bone and is a posterior continuation of the cavernous sinus. The superior petrosal sinus connects the cavernous sinus with the sigmoid sinus.
Cavernous sinus
Occipital sinus
Sigmoid sinus
Superior petrosal sinus