Arteries to the proximal part of the olfactory tract

Abstract

Destruction of the vascularisation of the olfactory structures during fronto-orbital surgical approaches to the sellar region may result in anosmia as a complication. The goal of this study was to describe the sources of blood supply to the proximal olfactory tract and the macroscopic distribution of these vessels. 20 human brains fixed in formalin with arteries injected with ink-coloured gelatine were studied using a surgical microscope and the micro-dissection technique. The vessels running along the olfactory tract posteriorly and anteriorly on its inferior and superior surface were observed. These arteries and arterioles were most often branches of the constant artery supplying the posterior part of the straight gyrus and orbital gyri (38/40). Similarly, as branches of the medial orbitofrontal artery (7/40), they were found on the superior aspect of the tract. Branches of the distal medial striate artery directed to the olfactory structures were observed on the basal surface of the tract (20/40).