Identify the different foramina in the skull and the nerves and vessels that pass through them

Question 1

List the different foramina in the order you’d find them from anterior to posteriorly and the contents of what goes through them

Answer 1

• Cribriform plate of ethmoid - olfactory nerve fibres
• Optic canal - optic nerve
• Superior orbital fissure - oculomotor nerve, trochlear nerve, V1 (optic division) trigeminal nerve, abducens nerve, superior opthalmic vein
• Foramen rotundum - V2 (maxillary division) trigeminal nerve
• Foramen ovale - V3 (mandibular division) trigeminal nerve
• Foramen lacerum - internal carotid artery
• Foramen spinosum - middle meningeal artery
• Carotid canal - internal carotid artery
• Internal acoustic meatus - facial nerve, vestibulocochlear, labyrinthine artery
• Jugular foramen - glossopharyngeal nerve, vagus, acessory nerve
• Hypoglossal nerve - hypoglossal nerve
• Foramen magnum - vertebral arteries, medulla of brain, spinal roots of acessory nerve

Question 2

Label this diagram of the different foramina

Answer 2