Palate

1. Palate

2. Palate
⦿Lies in the roof of
the oral cavity
⦿Has two parts:
Hard (bony) palate
anteriorly
Soft (muscular)
palate posteriorly
hard
soft palate

3. Hard Palate
⦿Lies in the roof of the oral
cavity
⦿Forms the floor of the
nasal cavity
⦿Formed by:
• Palatine processes of
maxillae in anterior 2/3rd
• Horizontal plates of
palatine bones in
posterior 1/3rd
• Anterolateral boundary is
formed by alveolar arches
and gums.

4. Hard Palate
⦿Posteriorly, continuous with soft palate
Arterial supply- greater palatine artery.
Venous drainage- pterygoid plexus of veins.
Nerve supply- greater palatine and nasopalatine
branches of pterygopalatine ganglion.
Lymphatics- deep cervical and retropharyngeal
nodes.

6. Soft Palate
Movable , muscular fold attached to the posterior border
of the hard palate.
Separates nasopharynx from the oropharynx and is often
looked upon as the traffic controller between the food and
air passage.
2 surfaces - anterior and posterior.
2 borders - superior and inferior.
Anterior surface is concave.
Posterior surface is convex and is continuously superiorly
with the floor of nasal cavity.

8. • Superior border is attached to posterior border of
hard palate.
• Inferior border is free and bound the pharyngeal
isthmus. In the middle of inferior border there is a
conical projection which is called as uvula. From
each side of base of uvula two curved mucosal fold
extends laterally and downwards.
• Anterior fold is palatoglossal arch. It contain
palatoglossus muscle and reach the tongue at the
juction of its oral and pharyngeal parts. This fold
forms the lateral boundary of oropharyngeal
isthmus.

10. Posterior fold is called palatopharyngeal arch.
It contain palatopharyngeus muscle.
It forms the posterior boundary of the tonsillar
fossa.

11. ⦿It is a fold of mucous membrane.
⦿Composed of:
Muscles
Palatine aponeurosis
Mucous glands
Taste buds.

12. Palatine Aponeurosis
⦿Is expanded tendon of
tensor veli palatini
⦿Splits to enclose
musculus uvulae
⦿Levator palati and
palatopharyngeus lies
on its superior surface.
⦿Palatoglossus lies on
its inferior surface.

13. Muscles of the soft palate
1. Tensor palati
2. Levator palati
3. Musculus uvulae
4. Palatoglossus
5. Palatopharyngeus.

14. Human Anatomy, Frolich, Head II:
Throat/Larynx

15. Muscles
⦿T
ensor veli palatini
Origin: greater wing and scaphoid fossa of
sphenoid bone; auditory tube
Insertion: forms palatine aponeurosis
Action: Tenses soft palate, opens the auditory
tube.
Levator veli palatini
Origin: petrous temporal bone, auditory tube
Insertion: upper surface of palatine aponeurosis
Action: Raises soft palate and opens the auditory
tube

17. Musculus uvulae
Origin: posterior nasal spine, palatine aponeurosis
Insertion: mucosa of uvula
 Action: Elevates uvula

18. Muscles
Palatoglossus
Origin: palatine aponeurosis
Insertion: side of tongue
Action: pulls root of tongue upward,
narrowing oropharyngeal isthmus
Palatopharyngeus
Origin: anterior fasciculus-
posterior border of hard palate.
Posterior fasciculus- palatine
aponeurosis
Insertion: posterior border of
thyroid cartilage, wall of pharynx
Action: Elevates wall of the
pharynx

19. Motor Nerve Supply
All the muscles, except tensor veli palatini, are
supplied by the:
Pharyngeal plexus which is formed by cranial
part of accessory nerve (through vagus).
Tensor veli palatini supplied by the:
Nerve to medial pterygoid, a branch of the
mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve

20. Sensory Nerve Supply
Mostly by the maxillary nerve through its branches:
Middle palatine nerve
Lesser palatine nerve
Glossopharyngeal nerve supplies the region of the soft
palate.
Special sensory nerve carry taste sensation from the
oral surface through lesser palatine nerves. Fibers
pass through greater petrosal nerve- geniculate
ganglion- nucleus of solitary tract.
Secretomotor nerves are also present in lesser
palatine nerve. They are derived fro superior salivatory
nucleus and pass through greater petrosal nerve.

21. Passavant’s ridge
Some fibers of palatopharyngeus pass circularly
deep to mucous membrane of the pharynx and
form a sphincter deep to superior constricter.
These fibers are called as passavant’s muscle and
on contraction they raised a ridge which is called
as passavant’s ridge on the posterior wall of
nasopharynx.
When soft palate is elevated it comes in contact
with this ridge and both close the pharyngeal
isthmus (between the nasopharynx and
oropharynx)

22. Blood Supply
• Branches of the maxillary artery
• Greater palatine
• Ascending palatine, branch of the facial artery
•Palatine branches of ascending pharyngeal artery.
Veins- pass to pterygoid and tonsillar plexus of veins.
Lymphatics- drain to upper deep cervical and
retropharyngeal nodes.

23. Function of soft palate
Control two gates- oropharyngeal and phayngeal
isthmus. It can completely close them or regulate
their size according to requirements. Because of
these it plays an important role in chewing,
swallowing, sneezing, speech and coughing.
It isolates the mouth while chewing so that
breathing is unaffected.
It separates nasopharynx from oropharynx during
second stage of swallowing so that food does not
enters the nose.

25. Quality of voice can be modified by varying the
degree of closure of pharyngeal isthmus.
During sneezing the blast of air is appropriately
divided and directed through nasal and oral
cavities without damaging the nose. Similarily
during coughing the sputum is directed in the
mouth and not in the nose.

26. Clinical Notes
• Cleft palate: defective
fusion of various
components forming
the palate.
• Complete non fusion-
y shaped cleft.
• Unilateral non fusion
• Midline cleft extending
to hard palate
• Cleft of soft palate
• Bifid uvula.

27. Paralysis of the soft palate (lesion of vagus
nerve).
c/f- nasal regurgitation of fluids, nasal twang in
voice, flattening of palatal arch.