6 - Oral Cavity Flashcards
What two structures border the palatine tonsils?
The platoglossus is the anterior pillar and the platopharyngeus is the posterior pillar.
What is the pharynx?
Name the regions of the pharynx from superior to inferior?
Proximal expansion of the GI gut tube.
Nasopharynx, oropharynx, and laryngopharynx.
How does the body handle the crossing of “streams” of air and food/liquid?
The soft palate raises to close off the nasopharynx.
The epiglottis will then push down and close over the windpipe so food and liquids go down the esophagus.
What important opening is located in the nasopharynx?
The torus tubarius, where the auditory (Eustachian) tube enters.
Why is it bad to plug your . nose and equilibrate the pressure between your nasal cavity and Eustachian tube when you’re sick?
You can cause bacteria to be pushed up the tube into the middle ear and then have a middle ear infection.
What is Waldeyer’s ring?
Immuno-competent tissue (tonsils and lymph follicles) that surround the passageway from the mouth and nasal cavity to the pharynx.
What bones make up the hard palate? What vessels and nerves go through these bones?
The maxilla and the palatine bones.
Nasopalatine nerve goes through the incisive fossa; the sphenopalatine artery does as well.
Greater and lesser palatine nerve, artery, and vein go through the greater and lesser palatine foramen.
Name the types of teeth in the mouth from those that are most rostral to those that are most caudal? How are teeth numbered?
Incisors, canines, premolars, molars.
From right to left.
Describe the innervation of the the incisors and canine teeth, premolars, and molars? What are all of these nerves branches of?
Incisors/canine: anterior superior alveolar n.
Premolar and 1/2 of teeth 3 and 14: middle superior alveolar.
1/2 of 3 and 14 and molars: posterior superior alveolar.
All branches of the CN V2.
Describe the innervation of the outer gums?
Most rostral tooth and a half are innervated by the anterior superior alveolar and infraorbital n.
Half of the second incisor up until between the two premolars is the infraorbital nerve.
The more caudal of the two premolars is the middle superior alveolar nerve.
Molars are the posterior superior alveolar nerves.
What nerve branches to innervate the maxilla?
The trigeminal nerve - the maxillary branch (V3)
What tooth is hardest to extract based on innervation?
Teeth 3 and 14 because the teeth themselves are innervated by the middle superior alveolar and the posterior superior alveolar.
What are the muscles of the soft palate? What are they innervated by?
- Tensor veli palatini (V3)
- Levator veli palatini
- Musculus uvulae
- Palatoglossus
- Palatopharyngeus
2-5 are innervated by the pharyngeal branch of the vagus nerve.
What muscle of the soft palate goes around the hamulus of the pterygoid plate? Describe the action of this muscle?
The tenor veli palatini.
It pulls sideways to extend the soft palate down harder. This allows you to push a bolus of food backwards.
What two muscles attach around the Eustachian tube and allow opening for the passage of air? What is the other muscle that attaches near the opening of the Eustachian (auditory tube)?
The tensor veli palatini and the levator veli palatini.
Salpingopharyngeus - salpinx is greek for tube. It attaches to the auditory tube and the pharynx.
How does the Eustachian tube in children differ from that of adults? What should parents be advised if their child is sick?
In children it’s more open and horizontal.
Children should wipe their nose instead of blow it because blowing it could cause bacteria to be pushed up into the auditory tube, which would cause a middle ear infection.
What are the arteries involved in the hard palate?
Greater palatine (maxillary) and sphenopalatine (maxillary) arteries.
What are the arteries involved in the soft palate? What is each a branch of?
- Lesser palatine (maxillary)
- Ascending palatine (facial)
- Palatine artery (ascending pharyngeal)
- Dorsal lingual (lingual)
