This review intended to describe in a didactic and practical manner the frontotemporosphenoidal craniotomy, which is usually known as pterional craniotomy and constitute the cranial approach mostly utilized in the modern neurosurgery. This is, then, basically a descriptive text, divided according to the main stages involved in this procedure, and describes with details how the authors currently perform this craniotomy.
craniotomy; microsurgery; neurosurgery