The sellar region is a tiny anatomic compartment in which many lesions and developmental diseases can be found.

The area immediately around the pituitary, the sellar region and parasellar region, is an anatomically complex area that represents a crucial crossroads for important adjacent structures.

The pituitary gland and sella are located below the center of the brain in the center of the skull base.

Access to the sella is limited from above by the optic nerves and chiasm and the circle of Willis, from laterally by the cavernous sinuses and both internal carotid artery, and from behind by the brainstem and basilar artery.

The vital structures protecting its superior, lateral, and posterior borders have led to the preferred surgical routes to tumors of the gland being from below through the nasal cavity and sphenoidal sinus or from anteriorly between the frontal lobe and the floor of the anterior cranial fossa.

Three-dimensional Cube from General Electric provides superior quality with thinner slices as well as diminished artifact and can replace conventional 2D FSE sequences for routine evaluations of the sellar region and parasellar region ¹⁾.

see Suprasellar region.

see Sellar region lesion.

Orbit and Sellar Region: Microsurgical Anatomy and Operative Approaches by Albert L. Rhoton, Yoshihiro Natori

Designed to bring all of orbital anatomy into perspective, this expert reference is the first to:

1) Provide a comprehensive review of the microsurgical anatomy of the orbit and sellar region;

2) Demonstrate the relationship of the orbit and surrounding structures;

3) Illustrate orbital structures from multiple operative approachesHundreds of vivid dissections show the orbit from above, below, laterally, medially, and anteriorly, with illustrations fully labeled for valuable review and study.

The organization of THE ORBIT AND SELLAR REGION leads to clarity and comprehension. Divided into three sections, the book begins with a full description of osseous, neural, arterial, venous, and muscular anatomy. It then goes on to stepwise dissections of the orbit from different directions, in which each layer is peeled away to expose the next deeper layer and the placement of the orbit and concludes with multiple common operative approaches to the sellar region.

MRI of the Pituitary Gland By Jean-François Bonneville, Fabrice Bonneville, Françoise Cattin, Sonia Nagi

This clinically oriented book will familiarize the reader with all aspects of the diagnosis of tumors and other disorders of the pituitary gland by means of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The coverage includes acromegaly, Cushing’s disease, Rathke cleft cysts, prolactinomas, incidentalomas, Clinically Non-Functioning Pituitary Neuroendocrine Tumors, other lesions of the sellar region, hypophysitis, and central diabetes insipidus. Normal radiologic anatomy and the numerous normal variants are described, and guidance is also provided on difficulties, artifacts, and other pitfalls. The book combines concise text and high-quality images with a question and answer format geared toward the needs of the practitioner. MRI is today considered the cornerstone in the diagnosis of diseases of the hypophyseal-hypothalamic region but the relatively small size of the pituitary gland, its deep location, the many normal anatomic variants, and the often tiny size of lesions can hinder precise evaluation of the anatomic structures and particularly the pituitary gland itself. Radiologists and endocrinologists will find MRI of the Pituitary Gland to be full of helpful information on this essential examination, and the book will also be of interest to internists and neurosurgeons.

Atlas of Sellar and Parasellar Lesions: Clinical, Radiologic, and Pathologic Correlations

This book presents, in a stepwise and interactive fashion, approximately 75 cases that reflect the wide spectrum of pathology encountered in this region. Each case description commences with a concise clinical scenario. High-quality radiologic, laboratory, and histopathologic images depicting the differentiating features of the lesion subtype in question are then presented, and key operative and clinical management pearls are briefly reviewed. The interdisciplinary nature of this easy-to-use color atlas and textbook reflects the fact that the management of patients with sellar and parasellar lesions is itself often interdisciplinary. The format is unique in that no similar interdisciplinary book is available on lesions of this region of the brain.

Atlas of Sellar and Parasellar Lesions: Clinical, Imaging, and Pathologic Correlations is of great value for practitioners and trainees in a range of medical specialties, including radiology, neurology, endocriniology, pathology, oncology, radiation oncology, and neurosurgery.