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Middle short insular gyrus

The middle short insular gyrus is one of the three short gyri located on the anterior part of the insular cortex within the lateral sulcus of the brain. Positioned between the anterior and posterior short insular gyri, it forms part of the anterior insula and is often involved in sensory and autonomic processing. Its structure and connections make it significant in understanding insular lobe function and various clinical conditions.

Synonyms

  • Middle short insular gyrus

  • Middle short gyrus of insula

  • Gyrus brevis insulae medius (Latin)

  • Middle insular gyrus (less common)

Arterial Supply

  • Supplied mainly by branches of the middle cerebral artery (MCA), specifically the insular branches arising from the M2 segment

  • Occasional minor contributions from the anterior cerebral artery (ACA) via the orbitofrontal branches

Venous Drainage

  • Drains into the deep middle cerebral vein (deep Sylvian vein)

  • Additional drainage can occur via smaller insular veins leading to the basal vein of Rosenthal or the superficial middle cerebral vein

Function

  • Involved in sensory integration, particularly taste (gustatory) and visceral sensation

  • Participates in autonomic control, such as regulating heart rate and blood pressure

  • Plays a role in emotional processing and interoceptive awareness (the perception of internal body states)

MRI Appearance

  • T1-weighted: Appears as a gray matter structure with iso to hypointense signal intensity, clearly demarcated from adjacent white matter

  • T2-weighted: Demonstrates relatively high signal intensity (brighter than white matter) typical of cortical gray matter

  • FLAIR: Gray matter appears hyperintense compared to white matter; useful for detecting subtle lesions, edema, or gliosis

CT Appearance

  • Appears as a subtle, low-density (hypodense) region compared to surrounding white matter

  • Differentiation may be limited due to low contrast, but becomes more apparent in cases of edema, infarct, or mass lesions affecting the insula

MRI images

middle short insular gyrus mri 3t axial image

MRI images

middle short insular gyrus mri 3t sagittal image

CT image

Middle short insular gyrus CT axial anatomy image -img-00001-00001