Processes Petrolingualis of the Foramen Lacerum and Relationship with the Internal Carotid Artery

Abstract

Aim: superior border of the petrolingual ligament is the marker for differentiating the cavernous part of the internal carotid artery from the lacerum part. To evaluate the presence or absence of intracranial aneurysms, the patients included in this study were evaluated with computerized tomographic angiography. Imaging data were stored in digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) format and subsequently converted using imaging software into three-dimensional volume rendered neurovascular images. These images of the 54 patients (27 male and 27 female) were evaluated to analyze the processes of the petrolingualis. In all cases, the processes of the petrolingualis were determined on the medial (petrous portion of the temporal bone) and lateral (sphenoid bone) side. This bony process may be used in the classification of internal carotid artery in patients who underwent three-dimensional computerized tomographic angiography. In the present study, the shape of the process and its relationship with the carotid artery were described.