Human Anatomy Part 2 - K. A. Diubenko, A. K. Kolomiitsev, Yu. B. Chaikovsky 2008

Special Section
Nervous system, systema nervosum - Special Section
Brain - Telencephalon - Lateral ventricles

The Lateral ventricles, ventriculi laterales, are cavities of the Telencephalon located deep within the cerebral hemispheres (Figs. 159, 160 A, B). The lateral ventricles consist of a central part, pars centralis, and three horns: the anterior horn, cornu anterius, the posterior horn, cornu posterius, and the inferior horn, cornu inferius.

The central part, pars centralis, of the lateral ventricle is a narrow horizontal slit, about 4 cm long and 1.5 cm wide, located in the parietal lobe of the hemisphere. Superiorly, it is bounded by the fibers of the corpus callosum; inferiorly, by the body of the caudate Nucleus, a portion of the dorsal surface of the thalamus, the stria terminalis, and part of the choroid plexus of the lateral ventricle. The medial wall of the central part is formed by the body of the fornix. Anteriorly, the central part continues into the anterior horn.

The anterior horn, cornu anterius, of the lateral ventricle is located in the frontal lobe. In a transverse section of the frontal lobe, it is triangular in shape. The superior and anterior walls of the anterior horn are formed by the anterior portions of the corpus callosum (the frontal radiation and the genu of the corpus callosum). The lateral wall and part of the inferior wall are formed by the Medial surface of the HEAD of the caudate nucleus, which bulges into the cavity of the anterior horn. The medial wall of each anterior horn is formed by a thin lamina of the septum pellucidum, lamina septi pellucidi. There are two laminae (right and left), between which lies a narrow slit-like cavity, the cavum septi pellucidi. In the posterior part of the medial wall of the anterior horn, between the thalamus and the Column of the fornix, is the interventricular foramen, foramen interventriculare, through which the cavity of the lateral ventricle communicates with the cavity of the Third ventricle.

The posterior horn, cornu posterius, of the lateral ventricle is located in the occipital lobe and is a direct continuation of the central part. It is a narrow cavity that appears triangular in frontal section. The cavity of the posterior horn has three walls: a concave medial wall, a convex lateral wall, and a highly narrowed superior wall. There are two elevations on the medial wall. The superior elevation is called the bulb of the posterior horn, bulbus cornus posterioris, which is formed by the posterior bundle of fibers of the corpus callosum. The inferior elevation is called the calcar avis, which is formed by the indentation of the calcarine sulcus into the ventricular cavity.

The inferior horn, cornu inferius, of the lateral ventricle is located in the temporal lobe. It has the appearance of a curved slit 3–4 cm long. In a frontal section of the inferior horn, four walls bounding its cavity are distinguished: lateral, medial, superior, and inferior. The lateral and superior walls are formed by the fibers of the corpus callosum, and the inferior wall by the collateral triangle, trigonum collaterale. The medial wall of the inferior horn is the hippocampus (part of the archicortex), which has invaginated into the ventricular cavity and corresponds to the sulcus of the same name, fissura hippocampi. The hippocampus is an arched elevation about 3 cm long that runs along the entire length of the inferior horn. Its anterior parts are called the pes hippocampi and end in a thickening with 3–4 digitated folds. Along the medial border of the hippocampus, between it and the dentate gyrus, lies a narrow band, the fimbria hippocampi, which is a continuation of the crus of the fornix. The pia mater invaginates into the central part of the lateral ventricle and the inferior horn, where it forms the choroid plexus, plexus choroideus ventriculi lateralis.

Class="center">

Fig. 160 A. Craniocerebral Topography of the ventricles of the Brain (lateral aspect) (by F. Kiss and J. Szentágothai).

Fig. 160 B. Craniocerebral topography of the ventricles of the brain (posterior-anterior aspect) by F. Kiss and J. Szentágothai



Last update: 08/08/2026

Editorial and Educational Adaptation: This material has been compiled based on the primary/original source text. The project team performed an editorial review, corrected technical inaccuracies, structured sections, and adapted the content for an educational format.

What was processed:

  • elimination of formatting defects (OCR errors, structural breaks, corrupted characters);
  • editorial organization of content;
  • standardization of terminology in accordance with academic sources;
  • verification of factual statements against the original source text.

All mentions of the author, publication year, and origin of the primary text have been preserved in accordance with the source.