Confluence of sinuses
Encyclopedia
The confluence of sinuses or torcular herophili is the connecting point of the superior sagittal sinus
, straight sinus
, and occipital sinus
. It is found deep to the occipital protuberance
of the skull
. Blood arriving at this point then proceeds to drain into the left and right transverse sinuses
. The superior sagittal sinus often drains into (either exclusively or predominantly) one transverse sinus, and the occipital sinus drains into the other.
An older term often used for the confluence of sinuses "torcular herophili", describes the veins as a gutter, or canal, and honors Herophilos
, the Greek anatomist who was the first to use cadavers for the systematic study of anatomy. This term more precisely refers to the concavity in the bone which is the location of the confluence of sinuses
Superior sagittal sinus
The superior sagittal sinus , within the human head, is an unpaired area along the attached margin of falx cerebri. It allows blood to drain from the lateral aspects of anterior cerebral hemispheres to the confluence of sinuses...
, straight sinus
Straight sinus
The straight sinus , within the human head, is an unpaired area beneath the brain which allows blood to drain from the inferior center of the head outwards posteriorly...
, and occipital sinus
Occipital sinus
The occipital sinus is the smallest of the cranial sinuses.It is situated in the attached margin of the falx cerebelli, and is generally single, but occasionally there are two....
. It is found deep to the occipital protuberance
Occipital protuberance
Occipital protuberance can refer to:* internal occipital protuberance* external occipital protuberance...
of the skull
Human skull
The human skull is a bony structure, skeleton, that is in the human head and which supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.In humans, the adult skull is normally made up of 22 bones...
. Blood arriving at this point then proceeds to drain into the left and right transverse sinuses
Transverse sinuses
The transverse sinuses , within the human head, are two areas beneath the brain which allow blood to drain from the back of the head. They run laterally in a groove along the interior surface of the occipital bone...
. The superior sagittal sinus often drains into (either exclusively or predominantly) one transverse sinus, and the occipital sinus drains into the other.
An older term often used for the confluence of sinuses "torcular herophili", describes the veins as a gutter, or canal, and honors Herophilos
Herophilos
Herophilos , sometimes Latinized Herophilus , was a Greek physician. Born in Chalcedon, he spent the majority of his life in Alexandria. He was the first scientist to systematically perform scientific dissections of human cadavers and is deemed to be the first anatomist. Herophilos recorded his...
, the Greek anatomist who was the first to use cadavers for the systematic study of anatomy. This term more precisely refers to the concavity in the bone which is the location of the confluence of sinuses