The clivus is a midline anatomical structure in the central skull base. It is affected by a wide range of non-neoplastic, benign and malignant pathologies, some of which typically affect the clivus because of its strategic location and embryological origins. Clival lesions may often be asymptomatic with occasional complaints like headache or cranial neuropathy in few. Cross-sectional imaging techniques, namely, computed tomographic scan and magnetic resonance imaging, thus, play a key role in approximating to the final diagnosis and estimating the disease extent. In this article, we highlight the important imaging features of various clival and paraclival pathologies to facilitate effective diagnosis, therapeutic planning, and management.
Keywords: abducens nerve; clivus; magnetic resonance imaging; skull base; skull base neoplasms/complications.
Indian Radiological Association. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ ).