Infratemporal fossa

What are the walls of the infratemporal fossa formed by?

The infratemporal fossa is an anatomical space. Its boundaries are formed by the following bone and soft tissue structures:

• Superior boundary — the temporal surface of the greater wing of the sphenoid bone. The fossa is also bounded superiorly by the zygomatic arch and the infratemporal crest (crista infratemporalis), which separates it from the temporally superior temporal fossa.
• Anterior boundary — the maxillary tuber and the infratemporal surface of the maxilla.
• Inferior boundary — the buccopharyngeal fascia.
• Posterior boundary — the styloid process of the temporal bone with muscles originating from it.
• Medial boundary (internal) — the lateral plate of the pterygoid process of the sphenoid bone.
• Lateral boundary (external) — the inner surface of the ramus of the mandible.

What structures does it communicate with?

The infratemporal fossa communicates with adjacent regions through the following pathways:

• With the external cranial base (Basis cranii externa) — the external base laterally continues freely into the infratemporal fossa.
• With the orbit (Orbita) — via the inferior orbital fissure.
• With the oral cavity — via the alveolar canals.
• With the pterygopalatine fossa (Fossa pterygopalatina) — via the pterygomaxillary fissure. The pterygopalatine fossa lies medial to the infratemporal fossa and represents its slit-like continuation.
• With the mandible — via the mandibular canal.
• With the temporal region — the fascial spaces of the temporal region communicate with the infratemporal fossa.

What is located in the infratemporal fossa?

Among the muscular structures associated with this region, the lateral pterygoid muscle (m. pterygoideus lateralis) stands out. It originates from the roof of the infratemporal fossa and the lateral plate of the pterygoid process. The muscle attaches to the capsule and articular disc of the temporomandibular joint and the neck of the condyle; it protrudes the mandible and performs laterotrusion.

Clinical significance in surgery and traumatology

• Ballistic and non-ballistic wounds: In severe facial trauma, most commonly shrapnel and less frequently gunshot wounds, the wounding projectile can penetrate deep into the tissues. The infratemporal fossa is one of the sites where foreign bodies localize in such injuries.
• Odontogenic inflammatory processes: The infratemporal fossa is one of the most dangerous locations for deep phlegmons and abscesses of the maxilla. Infection here is characterized by a highly virulent course. The main danger lies in the high risk of the purulent process spreading into the cranial cavity.
• Routes of infection: The purulent process can spread into the infratemporal fossa from adjacent fascial spaces, including the deep layer of the temporal region, where the focus is localized between the temporalis muscle and the temporal bone.
• Topographic classification: The infratemporal fossa does not belong to phlegmons located around the mandible, unlike the pterygomandibular, parapharyngeal, and retromandibular spaces.

Class and exam questions

What else to study on this topic

• Pterygopalatine fossa (Fossa pterygopalatina)
• External cranial base (Basis cranii externa)
• Temporal fossa (Fossa temporalis)
• Muscles of mastication
• Deep facial phlegmons

Other topics in the "Anatomical Structures" section

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