Meckel's Cave Neurenteric Cyst: Case Report^[*]

Meckel's cave, also known as the cavum trigeminale, first described by the German anatomist Johann Friedrich Meckel, overlies the petroclival junction. Traversing it is the Gasserian ganglion of the fifth cranial nerve along with its 3 divisions. In close relationship anteromedially is the cavernous sinus, with which it shares several dural layers and cranial nerves. Posteriorly, it opens into the superior aspect of the cerebellopontine angle. This location is a seat to many benign and infectious lesions which can present with varied irritative and compressive cranial nerve symptoms and signs. The authors discuss a rare case of a neurenteric (NE) cyst located entirely within Meckel's cave and causing trigeminal neuralgia. To best of our knowledge, an NE cyst has never been described in this location.

^* This article was originally published online in Central European Neurosurgery on August 9, 2011 (DOI:10.1055/s-0030-1269865)

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