Foramen ovale

The foramen ovale is a significant, oval-shaped opening found within the greater wing of the sphenoid bone. It serves as a conduit between the cranial cavity and the infratemporal fossa region.

On the inside, or within the cranial cavity, particularly in the middle cranial fossa, you can locate the foramen ovale lying posterolateral to the foramen rotundum, and off to the side of the lingula—the pronounced edge of the carotid sulcus. On the outside, at the skull’s base, this aperture emerges posterolateral to the upper end of the posterior border of the lateral pterygoid plate.

Several vital anatomical structures traverse the foramen ovale. These include the mandibular branch of the trigeminal nerve, an accessory meningeal artery, the lesser petrosal nerve, and an emissary vein (connecting the cavernous sinus with the pterygoid plexus of veins below, inside the infratemporal fossa).