[Structure and histo-topography of meniscoid structures of the atlanto-occipital and atlanto-axial joints].

Anatomical preparation, Pirogov's saw-cuts and serial histotopographic sections, made across the atlantooccipital and atlantoaxial joints in the sagittal, frontal and horizontal planes in 35 corpses have been used in reconstructing and studying the meniscoid structures in the area of the joints mentioned. The meniscoids are composed of fine fibrillar connective tissue with a large amount of fat and vessels. The meniscoid has a triangle form, its base consisting of collagenous fibers, gradually transfers into the articular capsule, and its apex is directed into the articular cavity. The meniscoid, surrounding the tooth of the axial vertebra, at the sides passes into the medial parts of the atlantoocipital and lateral atlantoaxial joints, forming a single meniscoid complex of the joints studied. A tight connection is stated between the meniscoids and the perineural formations of the I and II cervical nerves and with the vertebral vessels.