What is the major arterial supply to the calvaria and supratentorial dura?

• A. Middle meningeal
• B. Posterior meningeal
• C. Anterior cerebral
• D. Superior sagittal

Answer: (A)

The major arterial supply to the calvaria and the supratentorial dura comes from the middle meningeal artery. This large branch of the maxillary artery enters the skull through the foramen spinosum and travels in the potential space between the periosteal surface of the skull and the dura, delivering most of the blood to the dura and the outer tables of the skull. It forms extensive connections with other meningeal arteries, so it provides the primary arterial inflow to this region.

In contrast, the posterior meningeal artery supplies more of the posterior portion of the dura, and the anterior cerebral artery and the superior sagittal sinus refer to intracranial arterial supply to brain tissue or a venous channel, not the main arterial supply to the dura.