Hypothalamus: relations (Latin)

The hypothalamus is located anterior and inferior to the thalamus, surrounding the ventral portion of the ventriculus tertius. Anteriorly, the hypothalamus is bordered by the commissura anterior, lamina terminalis and chiasma opticum (superior to inferior). The posterior border is adjacent to the tegmentum mesencephali superiorly and the corpora mamillaria inferiorly. The superior border is marked by the sulcus hypothalamicus, and the inferior border by the tuber cinereum. In sagittal view, the hypothalamus can be divided into 4 main areas. The anteriormost area is the area preoptica. Immediately posterior to this is the area hypothalamica anterior and then the area hypothalamica intermedia. Finally, the posteriormost area is the one that corresponds to the corpus mamillare and is called the area hypothalamica posterior.