Intracranial Venous System Overview

Sigmoid sinus

Jugular bulb

Pterygoid venous plexus

Sigmoid sinus

Inferior petrosal sinus

Pterygoid venous plexus

Choroid plexus in lateral recess, 4th

ventricle

Venous plexus in foramen ovale

Inferior ophthalmic vein

Superior petrosal sinus

Cavernous sinus

Petrosal vein

Clival venous plexus

(Top) Series of axial T1 C+ MR scans from inferior to superior are depicted. Note inhomogeneous flow in the jugular bulb. This is normal

and should not be mistaken for a mass or thrombus (jugular "pseudolesion"). (Middle) Section through the lateral recesses of the 4th

ventricle shows the inferior petrosal sinuses, tributaries of the jugular bulb. The pterygoid venous plexus and the venous plexus in the

foramen ovale are connected through the skull base to the cavernous sinus. These intra- to extracranial connections may provide an

important source of collateral venous drainage if the cavernous sinus becomes occluded. (Bottom) Section through the cavernous sinus

shows connections with the clival plexus and the orbit (inferior ophthalmic vein). Petrosal veins in the cerebellopontine angle cistern are

prominent but normal in this case.

AXIAL T1 C+ MR

Trauma, and Stroke

Brain: Pathology-Based Diagnoses: Malformations,

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