Anatomy of the Skull Quiz

The Human Skull

• The human skull comprises 28 bones, categorized as unpaired and paired.
• Unpaired bones include the frontal, sphenoid, vomer, ethmoid, occipital, and mandible.
• Paired bones include the parietal, zygomatic, maxilla, lacrimal, palatine, and nasal bones.
• Also included are the ear ossicles (malleus, incus, and stapes).
• The skull supports structures of the head, face, and brain.
• Intramembranous and endochondral ossification processes form the skull.
• Fontanelles are large fibrous areas where several sutures meet in neonatal skulls.
• Sutures are fibrous joints of cranial bones, connecting various skull bones.
• Foramina are openings in the skull through which structures pass.
• The skull's axial skeleton is part of a larger two-part skeleton, along with the appendicular skeleton.
• The human skull is divided into regions called cranial fossae.
• The cranial fossae are depressions that form a bowl-shape and house the brain.
• There are 3 cranial fossae: anterior, middle, and posterior fossae.
• The sella turcica is a saddle-shaped structure within the sphenoid bone.
• The sella turcica houses the pituitary gland.
• Objectives for studying the human skull include recognizing all bones, comprehending their structural and functional roles, understanding ossification differences, relating bones, articulations, and sutures, and listing foramina and their associated structures.
• The skull is divided into the neurocranium and viscerocranium.
• The neurocranium forms the bony case surrounding the brain.
• The viscerocranium comprises facial bones, supporting orbits, nasal, and oral cavities.
• The skull's structure allows it to fulfill its function in protecting the brain and supporting facial structures.

Cranial Base & Fossae

• The cranial base forms the floor of the cranial cavity
• Foramina, such as the foramen magnum, optic canal, and jugular foramen, are important openings in the cranial base.
• The cranial base is complex, consisting of multiple bones and multiple foramina.
• The cranial fossae are depressions that house sections of the brain.
• The anterior cranial fossa houses frontal lobes.
• The middle cranial fossa houses temporal lobes.
• The posterior cranial fossa houses the brain stem and cerebellum.

Skull Classification

• The skull develops through intramembranous and endochondral ossification.
• Intramembranous ossification forms flat bones like those of the calvaria.
• Endochondral ossification generates bones in the base of the skull.
• Neurocranium, including the skull base and calvaria, is a key structural component.
• Viscerocranium includes facial bones that support various cavities.

Fontanelles

• Fontanelles are flexible areas where sutures meet in the fetal and neonatal skull.
• They allow the skull to reshape during birth and accommodate brain growth.
• There are multiple types of fontanelles: anterior, posterior, sphenoid, and mastoid.
• Fontanelles typically close during infancy.

Sutures

• Sutures are fibrous joints that connect the bones of the skull.
• Different sutures connect different bones within the skull.
• The different sutures show the areas where the bones connect.

Cranial nerves

• Cranial nerves pass through foramina in the skull to interact with sensory organs and muscles in the body.