A cranial fossa is formed by the floor of the cranial cavity.
There are three distinct cranial fossae:
- Anterior cranial fossa (fossa cranii anterior), housing the projecting frontal lobes of the brain
- Middle cranial fossa (fossa cranii media), separated from the posterior fossa by the clivus and the petrous crest housing the temporal lobe
- Posterior cranial fossa (fossa cranii posterior), between the foramen magnum and tentorium cerebelli, containing the brainstem and cerebellum
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