[Durgical](https://durgical.com/en/) › [DurgiPedia](https://durgical.com/en/durgipedia/) › [Anatomy](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/) › [Head and neck](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/region/head-and-neck/) › Temporal lobe [Nervous system](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/system/nervous-system/) · [Head and neck](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/region/head-and-neck/) # Temporal lobe The temporal lobe is the lower side part of each half of the brain, behind the temple; it handles hearing, understanding language, memory and recognising faces. Official name: Middle temporal gyrus [See in 3D →](https://durgical.app/?from=durgipedia&lang=en#region=head_neck&select=temporal_lobe&side=r) Opens in the Durgical app, no sign-up needed. ## What it is The lower side part of each hemisphere, behind the temple. ## What it does Hearing, language understanding, memory and recognising faces and objects. ## Key points - The most common source of focal seizures in adults: an aura of rising epigastric feeling, fear, a smell or déjà vu, then a blank stare with lip-smacking or hand automatisms - Meyer loop: the lower optic radiation fibres loop forward around the temporal horn; damage gives a contralateral superior quadrantanopia ("pie in the sky") - Bilateral medial temporal damage causes dense anterograde amnesia, as in the historical patient H.M. after bilateral resection in 1953 - The uncus lies at the tentorial notch: a mass above pushes it down onto the oculomotor nerve, with a dilated pupil on the same side (uncal herniation) ## Key facts **Where** Below the lateral sulcus **Blood supply** MCA (lateral), PCA (inferior) **Function** Hearing, language comprehension (Wernicke), memory, face recognition ## Relations **Above** Frontal and parietal lobes across the [lateral sulcus](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/lateral-sulcus/), in which the [middle cerebral artery](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/middle-cerebral-artery/) runs; the [insula](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/insula/) is hidden deep in the fissure **Below** Floor of the middle cranial fossa in front; the [tentorium](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/tentorium-cerebelli/) and the [cerebellum](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/anterior-quadrangular-lobule/) behind **Medial** Uncus and parahippocampal gyrus beside the [midbrain](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/midbrain/), with the [oculomotor nerve](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/oculomotor-nerve/) and the [posterior cerebral artery](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/posterior-cerebral-artery/) at the tentorial notch **Lateral** Squamous part of the [temporal bone](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/temporal-bone/) and the [temporalis muscle](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/temporalis-muscle/) **Deep** Temporal horn of the [lateral ventricles](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/lateral-ventricle/), with the [hippocampus](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/hippocampus/) in its floor and the [amygdala](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/amygdaloid-body/) at its tip ## How to find it On the lateral surface three parallel gyri (superior, middle and inferior) run back below the lateral sulcus; on the upper surface, hidden in the fissure, lie the transverse gyri of the [auditory cortex](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/transverse-temporal-gyri/). The inferior surface carries the fusiform and parahippocampal gyri. MRI for epilepsy uses thin coronal slices tilted perpendicular to the long [axis](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/axis/) of the hippocampus. ## Examination - Three-word recall after a few minutes of other tasks: words repeated correctly at first but lost later point to medial temporal (hippocampal) dysfunction - Confrontation visual fields: a matching defect in the upper quadrants on the side opposite the lesion points to the Meyer loop - Naming common objects: difficulty finding names (anomia) is frequent with lesions of the dominant temporal lobe ## On imaging Herpes simplex encephalitis shows asymmetric high T2/FLAIR signal and restricted diffusion in the medial temporal lobes, insula and orbital frontal cortex, typically sparing the basal ganglia. Mesial temporal sclerosis shows a small, bright hippocampus on coronal FLAIR. ## Common problems - Head injury and tumours here change personality, judgement and planning. - Front-lobe dementia changes behaviour first. ## How it is diagnosed Neurological and memory tests; CT or MRI. ## Treatment - Surgery for tumours when possible. - Rehabilitation and support. ## Clinical notes - Herpes simplex encephalitis targets the medial and inferior temporal lobes: fever, confusion, behaviour change and seizures - Anterior temporal lobectomy for drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy can cut Meyer loop and leave an upper quadrant field defect - Lesions of the fusiform gyrus (inferior temporo-occipital, often bilateral or right-sided) cause prosopagnosia, the inability to recognise familiar faces - In Colombia and the rest of Latin America, neurocysticercosis (larval cysts of the pork tapeworm) is a common cause of acquired seizures; a cyst or calcified scar in the cortex of any lobe can be the focus - Middle ear and mastoid infection can spread through the thin tegmen tympani to cause a temporal lobe abscess (otogenic abscess), with headache, fever and sometimes aphasia ## Development As the hemisphere enlarges it curves back and then down and forward in a C; the temporal lobe forms the [lower limb](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/region/lower-limb/) of that C and carries the temporal horn, the hippocampus and the tail of the caudate with it. ## Memory aid "Pie in the sky": temporal lobe (Meyer loop, upper quadrant); "pie on the floor": [parietal lobe](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/superior-parietal-lobule/) (lower quadrant). ## Related conditions - [MELAS (mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes)](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/melas/) - [Traumatic brain injury](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/traumatic-brain-injury/) - [Epilepsy and seizures](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/epilepsy-and-seizures/) - [Alzheimer disease](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/alzheimer-disease/) - [Glioblastoma](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/glioblastoma/) - [Local anaesthetic systemic toxicity (LAST)](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/local-anaesthetic-systemic-toxicity/) - [Viral encephalitis (herpes simplex encephalitis)](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/viral-encephalitis/) - [Brain abscess](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/brain-abscess/) - [Status epilepticus](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/status-epilepticus/) - [Frontotemporal dementia](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/frontotemporal-dementia/) - [Autoimmune encephalitis (including anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis)](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/autoimmune-encephalitis/) - [Febrile seizures](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/febrile-seizures/) - [Schizophrenia](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/schizophrenia/) - [Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/autism-spectrum-disorder/) - [Schizoaffective, schizophreniform, brief psychotic and delusional disorders](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/schizoaffective-schizophreniform-brief-psychotic-and-delusional-disorders/) ## Test yourself Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it. ## What is the typical sequence of a temporal lobe seizure? An aura (rising epigastric feeling, fear, a smell or déjà vu), then a blank stare with lip-smacking or hand automatisms; the most common focal seizures in adults. ## Which visual field defect follows damage to Meyer loop in the temporal lobe? A contralateral superior quadrantanopia («pie in the sky»), as the lower optic radiation fibres loop forward around the temporal horn. ## What happens in uncal herniation of the temporal lobe? A mass above pushes the uncus down at the tentorial notch onto the oculomotor nerve, with a dilated pupil on the same side. ## Which infection targets the medial and inferior temporal lobes, and how does it present? Herpes simplex encephalitis: fever, confusion, behaviour change and seizures; MRI shows asymmetric high T2/FLAIR signal sparing the basal ganglia. ## What does bilateral medial temporal damage cause? Dense anterograde amnesia, as in the historical patient H.M. after bilateral resection in 1953. [Add to my cards (5)](https://durgical.app/estudiar/?add=/en/anatomy/middle-temporal-gyrus/) Educational information, not medical advice. For any symptom, see a health professional. ## Its names **Official Latin (TA2)** gyrus temporalis medius TA2 5495 **Official Spanish (DeCS)** Lóbulo Temporal DeCS D013702 **English (TA2)** Middle temporal gyrus ## Related - [Middle cerebral artery](https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/middle-cerebral-artery/) Sources: Terminologia Anatomica (TA2); [DeCS](https://decs.bvsalud.org/es/ths/resource/?id=14080); [Neuroanatomy, Temporal Lobe](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK519512/); [16.2 The Mental Status Exam](https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/16-2-the-mental-status-exam) (OpenStax (Rice University), 2022) · adapted, [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/); [13.2 The Central Nervous System](https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/13-2-the-central-nervous-system) (OpenStax (Rice University), 2022) · adapted, [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/); Anatomía humana (4.ª ed.), tomo 1, cap. 27: Relaciones del cerebro. ## **Spotted a mistake?** We are always improving for the community. Tell us what is wrong and our team will review it. Report a mistake Representative model, for educational purposes only. --- Source: https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/middle-temporal-gyrus/ License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/anatomy/middle-temporal-gyrus/