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The previously‐unrecognized posterior deep temporal nerve groove on the cranial base
Author(s) -
Dias G.J.,
Dennison K.J.,
Premachandra I.M.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
international journal of osteoarchaeology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.738
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1099-1212
pISSN - 1047-482X
DOI - 10.1002/oa.537
Subject(s) - groove (engineering) , crania , anatomy , medicine , demography , materials science , sociology , metallurgy
A groove was observed in the infratemporal fossa region of the cranial base, passing laterally from the foramen ovale onto the squamous temporal bone. We could not find any description of this groove in the literature. It is hypothesized that, due to its location, the groove is formed by the posterior deep temporal nerve. A study of the extent of this groove in 50 precontact New Zealand Maori adults (28 males, 22 females), 41 precontact Chatham Island Moriori adults (27 males, 14 females), and 32 modern Indian adults (12 males, 20 females) showed that there was a very high prevalence of the groove in the Indian crania but much less so in either of the two Polynesian samples. In none of the groups studied was there any evidence of selective preference for the presence of the groove on one or other sides of the cranial base. The evidence that the presence of the groove appears to be strongly dependent on the ethnic group being studied may make it a useful non‐metric trait. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.