The dura mater is the thick, tough outermost layer of the meninges. In the skull it has two layers, an outer periosteal layer stuck to the bone and an inner meningeal layer, which separate in places to enclose the dural venous sinuses and fold inward to form partitions such as the falx cerebri and tentorium cerebelli. In the spine it forms a single tube separated from the bone by the epidural space.
| Location | Lining the inside of the skull and forming the dural sac in the vertebral canal from the foramen magnum to about S2 |
|---|---|
| Parts |
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| Connections |
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| Blood Supply | Middle meningeal artery; Accessory meningeal artery; Anterior meningeal (ethmoidal) arteries; Meningeal branches of the occipital, ascending pharyngeal and vertebral arteries |
Provides a tough protective envelope for the brain and spinal cord, partitions the cranial cavity to limit brain movement, and houses the venous sinuses.
The dura is richly supplied by pain fibres, mainly from the trigeminal nerve above the tentorium and upper cervical and vagal fibres below, so stretching or inflammation of the dura causes headache. A tear of the middle meningeal artery bleeds between skull and dura (extradural haematoma). Dural tears cause CSF leaks, and dural arteriovenous fistulas can cause tinnitus or haemorrhage.
Arterial bleeding, usually from the middle meningeal artery after a temporal skull fracture, collecting between the skull and dura and often with a lucid interval.
An abnormal connection between meningeal arteries and dural venous sinuses that can cause pulsatile tinnitus, venous congestion or bleeding.
A breach of the dura from trauma, surgery or spontaneous causes allowing CSF to leak, producing a postural headache or clear nasal or wound fluid.
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