Descending palatine artery
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| Artery: Descending palatine artery | |
|---|---|
| Plan of branches of internal maxillary artery. ("Desc. pal." visible in upper right.) | |
| Latin | a. palatina descendens |
| Gray's | subject #144 562 |
| Dorlands/Elsevier | a_61/12155339 |
The Descending Palatine Artery descends through the pterygopalatine canal with the anterior palatine branch of the sphenopalatine ganglion, and, emerging from the greater palatine foramen, runs forward in a groove on the medial side of the alveolar border of the hard palate to the incisive canal; the terminal branch of the artery passes upward through this canal to anastomose with the sphenopalatine artery.
Branches are distributed to the gums, the palatine glands, and the mucous membrane of the roof of the mouth; while in the pterygopalatine canal it gives off twigs which descend in the lesser palatine canals to supply the soft palate and palatine tonsil, anastomosing with the ascending palatine artery.
Most sources (including Dorlands) state that the Descending Palatine Artery branches into the "Greater Palatine artery" and "Lesser Palatine artery", but some sources equate the Descending Palatine Artery with the Greater Palantine (see external links for examples.)
[edit] Additional images
Base of skull. Inferior surface. |
[edit] External links
This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained herein may be outdated. Please edit the article if this is the case, and feel free to remove this notice when it is no longer relevant.
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