Manfrè L, Ferlito S, Conticello S, Pero G, Cardinale A E
Istituto di Radiologia, Università di Palermo.
Radiol Med. 1994 Sep;88(3):183-9.
The pterygopalatine fossa (PPF) is a narrow, bone lined space containing many major cranial nerves and vessels connecting it to the middle and infratemporal cranial fossa, the oral, nasal and orbital cavities and the rhinopharynx. The internal maxillary artery, the second branch of the V cranial nerve and the sphenopalatine ganglion are the main structures which are found in the PPF. Because of its strategic site, the PPF can be involved in many pathologic conditions originating from the nasal fossa, the orbit, the paranasal sinuses or the rhinopharynx roof. Severe craniofacial trauma can involve the pterygopalatine area too. Consequently, the detailed knowledge of PPF anatomy and the use of the current imaging modalities are necessary in the study of pterygopalatine lesions. We examined a group of 7 patients who underwent CT and MRI for diseases not involving the pterygopalatine area. CT consisted of axial and coronal contiguous 1-mm scans, with post-processing sagittal and 3D reconstructions. MRI was performed with a middle-field unit, using a head coil and high-resolution 3-mm T1- and T2-weighted spin- and fast-spin-echo scans. 3D SPGR pulse sequences were also performed. We found HRCT scans and post-processing 3D studies to be particularly indicated in bone structure analysis. SPGR, spin- and fast-spin-echo MR sequences allowed us to obtained reliable images of the main nervous and vascular structures found in the PPF. Finally, we believe combined CT and MRI to be the method of choice in the study of PPF anatomy and in the assessment of diseases involving the PPF area.
翼腭窝（PPF）是一个狭窄的、骨质衬里的间隙，包含许多主要的颅神经和血管，将其与中颅窝和颞下颅窝、口腔、鼻腔和眼眶以及鼻咽相连。上颌内动脉、三叉神经第二支和蝶腭神经节是翼腭窝内的主要结构。由于其重要的位置，翼腭窝可累及许多起源于鼻窝、眼眶、鼻窦或鼻咽顶部的病理状况。严重的颅面创伤也可累及翼腭区域。因此，详细了解翼腭窝的解剖结构并运用当前的成像方式对于研究翼腭窝病变是必要的。我们检查了一组7例因不涉及翼腭区域的疾病而接受CT和MRI检查的患者。CT包括轴向和冠状面连续1毫米扫描，并进行矢状面和三维重建的后处理。MRI使用中场设备，采用头部线圈以及高分辨率3毫米T1加权和T2加权自旋回波和快速自旋回波扫描。还进行了三维扰相梯度回波（SPGR）脉冲序列检查。我们发现高分辨率CT扫描和三维重建的后处理在骨结构分析中特别适用。SPGR、自旋回波和快速自旋回波MR序列使我们能够获得翼腭窝内主要神经和血管结构的可靠图像。最后，我们认为CT和MRI联合检查是研究翼腭窝解剖结构以及评估累及翼腭窝区域疾病的首选方法。
