meningeal artery

Thân thiện

A surgeon carefully clamps a bleeding meningeal artery during a procedure.

Definition

Noun: * Meningeal Artery: Any of the paired arteries that branch from larger vessels (such as the maxillary, occipital, or vertebral arteries) to supply blood to the three protective membranes (the meninges) surrounding the brain and spinal cord, as well as to adjacent structures like the skull and dura mater.

Usage

The term "meningeal artery" is a specific anatomical term used primarily in medical, biological, and clinical contexts. * It is typically used with a modifier to specify which of the several meningeal arteries is being discussed (e.g., middle meningeal artery, anterior meningeal artery). * It refers to the functional role of these vessels in supplying nutrients and oxygen to the non-brain tissues encasing the central nervous system.

Examples

• The meningeal artery most frequently injured in skull fractures is the middle meningeal artery.
• Surgeons must carefully avoid the anterior meningeal artery during certain cranial procedures.
• Bleeding from a ruptured meningeal artery can cause an epidural hematoma, a serious medical emergency.

Advanced Usage

• Clinical Significance: Rupture of a meningeal artery, often due to head trauma, is a primary cause of an epidural hemorrhage, where blood accumulates between the skull and the dura mater. This requires immediate neurosurgical intervention.
• Anatomical Variants: The branching pattern and origin of the meningeal arteries can have normal anatomical variations, which are important for radiologists and neurosurgeons to recognize.

Variants and Related Words

• Middle Meningeal Artery: The largest of the meningeal arteries and the most clinically significant due to its vulnerability to injury. It typically arises from the maxillary artery.
• Anterior Meningeal Artery: Usually arises from the anterior ethmoidal artery or the ophthalmic artery, supplying the anterior cranial fossa.
• Posterior Meningeal Artery: Often arises from the ascending pharyngeal artery or the vertebral artery, supplying the posterior cranial fossa.
• Accessory Meningeal Artery: A smaller artery that may also supply the dura mater.
• Meningeal (adj.): Pertaining to the meninges (e.g., meningeal layer, meningeal irritation).

Synonyms

• Arteria Meningea: The formal Latin term used in anatomical nomenclature.
• Dural Artery: A less common but descriptive synonym, as these arteries primarily supply the dura mater, the outermost meningeal layer.

Related Phrases

• Meningeal artery rupture: The tearing of one of these arteries.
• Meningeal artery embolization: A minimally invasive procedure to block a meningeal artery, sometimes used to treat certain vascular abnormalities or tumors.

Học thuật

Noun

1. any of three arteries supplying the meninges of the brain and neighboring structures

Từ đồng nghĩa

• arteria meningea