Parietal foramen

Last revised by Ammar Ashraf on 27 Jun 2023

The parietal foramina are inconstant foramina on each side of the posterior aspect of the parietal bone near the sagittal suture and represent a normal anatomic variant. They transmit emissary veins, draining to the superior sagittal sinus, and occasionally a branch of the occipital artery. The foramina are variably-present, and often absent 3. When both parietal foramina are present, the point along the sagittal suture that is intersected by an imaginary line connecting the two parietal foramina is called the obelion.

Variant anatomy

  • giant parietal foramina
    • may be a benign incidental variant but have been shown to be associated with anomalies, especially venous 1 
    • present as a pair of large and symmetrical parietal bone lucencies near the lambda 2

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