dots-menu
×

Home  »  Anatomy of the Human Body  »  pages 798

Henry Gray (1825–1861). Anatomy of the Human Body. 1918.

pages 798

border. The horizontal portion extends transversely across the inferior peduncle, below the striæ medullares, and roofs in the lower and posterior part of the lateral recess; it is attached by its lower margin to the inferior peduncle, and partly encloses the choroid plexus, which, however, projects beyond it like a cluster of grapes; and hence this part of the tænia has been termed the cornucopia (Bochdalek). The obex is a thin, triangular, gray lamina, which roofs in the lower angle of the ventricle and is attached by its lateral margins to the clavæ. The tela chorioidea of the fourth ventricle is the name applied to the triangular fold of pia mater which is carried upward between the cerebellum and the medulla oblongata. It consists of two layers, which are continuous with each other in front, and are more or less adherent throughout. The posterior layer covers the antero-inferior surface of the cerebellum, while the anterior is applied to the structures which form the lower part of the roof of the ventricle, and is continuous inferiorly with the pia mater on the inferior peduncles and closed part of the medulla.


FIG. 708– Scheme of roof of fourth ventricle. The arrow is in the foramen of Majendie. (See enlarged image)

Choroid Plexuses.—These consist of two highly vascular inflexions of the tela chorioidea, which invaginate the lower part of the roof of the ventricle and are everywhere covered by the epithelial lining of the cavity. Each consists of a vertical and a horizontal portion: the former lies close to the middle line, and the latter passes into the lateral recess and projects beyond its apex. The vertical parts of the plexuses are distinct from each other, but the horizontal portions are joined in the middle line; and hence the entire structure presents the form of the letter T, the vertical limb of which, however, is double.

Openings in the Roof.—In the roof of the fourth ventricle there are three openings, a medial and two lateral: the medial aperture (foramen Majendii), is situated immediately above the inferior angle of the ventricle; the lateral apertures, (foramina of Luschka are found at the extremities of the lateral recesses. By means of these three openings the ventricle communicates with the subarachnoid cavity, and the cerebrospinal fluid can circulate from the one to the other.

Rhomboid Fossa (fossa rhomboidea; “floor” of the fourth ventricle) (Fig. 709).—The anterior part of the fourth ventricle is named, from its shape, the rhomboid fossa, and its anterior wall, formed by the back of the pons and medulla oblongata, constitutes the floor of the fourth ventricle. It is covered by a thin layer of gray