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open access eISSN 2093-3673

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Original Article

Anat Cell Biol 2022; 55(2): 124-129

Published online June 30, 2022

https://doi.org/10.5115/acb.21.255

Copyright © Korean Association of ANATOMISTS.

Discovery of a trans-sellar vascular supply for the pituitary gland

Casey P. Spinelli1 , Joe Iwanaga2,3 , Mi-Sun Hur4 , Aaron S. Dumont2 , R. Shane Tubbs2,3,5,6,7,8,9

1Tulane University & Ochsner Clinic Neurosurgery Program, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, 2Department of Neurosurgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, 3Department of Neurology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, USA, 4Department of Anatomy, Catholic Kwandong University College of Medicine, Gangneung, Korea, 5Department of Neurosurgery and Ochsner Neuroscience Institute, Ochsner Health System, New Orleans, LA, USA, 6Department of Anatomical Sciences, St. George’s University, St. George’s, Grenada, 7Department of Surgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, 8Department of Structural & Cellular Biology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, USA, 9University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

Correspondence to:Joe Iwanaga
Department of Neurosurgery, Tulane Center for Clinical Neurosciences, Tulane University School of Medicine, 131 S. Robertson St. Suite 1300, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
E-mail: iwanagajoeca@gmail.com

Mi-Sun Hur’s current affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Daegu Catholic University School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea

Received: December 29, 2021; Revised: February 11, 2022; Accepted: March 3, 2022

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

The vasculature of the pituitary gland is discussed briefly and the details of an anatomical discovery of the vessels supplying the pituitary gland provided. Twenty latex injected cadaveric heads were dissected. Any vessels that were found to penetrate the sella turcica and travel to the pituitary gland were documented and measured. Additionally, 25 adult skulls were evaluated for the presence, size, and sites of bony foramina in the floor of sella turcica. Trans-sellar vessels were identified in 65% of specimens. There was a mean of 1.5 vessels per specimen consisting usually of a mixture of veins and arteries. The mean diameter of these vessels was 0.3 mm and the mean length from the sella turcica to the pituitary gland was 2.3 mm. These vessels were concentrated in the most concave part of the sella turcica. In bony specimens, the mean number of trans-sellar foramina was four. The diameter of these foramina ranged from 0.3 to 0.6 mm in size. The trans-sellar foramina were concentrated near the center part of the sella turcica and had no regular pattern. The pituitary gland receives at least some blood supply and drainage via vessels traveling along the septum of the sphenoidal sinuses and through the sella turcica. Knowledge of such vessels might lead to a better understanding of the vascular supply and drainage of the pituitary gland and would be useful during skull base approaches such as trans-nasal approaches to the pituitary gland.

Keywords: Anatomy, Cadaver, Sphenoid bone, Blood supply, Pituitary gland

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