[The persistence of a spheno-occipital synchondrosis in an adult]
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A Standardized Surgical Technique for Tessier Medial Transnasal Canthopexy
Published on: January 23, 2026
1Service de Neuroradiologie, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris.
Abstract:
The postnatal development of the central skull base is a complex process: at least 25 separate ossification centers are assimilated in the maturing sphenoid and occipital bones. Some synchondroses may only be partially fused and persist during adulthood. We report the case of a 30-year-old man with a penetrating trauma of the central skull base. Skull computed tomography demonstrated a rare anatomic variant: incomplete fusion of the spheno-occipital synchondrosis. Knowledge of the normal skull base development and of its variants may prove helpful in differentiating a post-traumatic injury from a normal variant.
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