The lesser palatine arteries are
arteries
An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pul ...
of the
head
A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...
. It is a branch of the
descending palatine artery
The descending palatine artery is a branch of the third part of the maxillary artery supplying the hard and soft palate.
Course
It descends through the greater palatine canal with the greater and lesser palatine branches of the pterygopalatine gan ...
. They supply the
palatine tonsils
Palatine tonsils, commonly called the tonsils and occasionally called the faucial tonsils, are tonsils located on the left and right sides at the back of the throat, which can often be seen as flesh-colored, pinkish lumps. Tonsils only present as ...
and the
soft palate
The soft palate (also known as the velum, palatal velum, or muscular palate) is, in mammals, the soft tissue constituting the back of the roof of the mouth. The soft palate is part of the palate of the mouth; the other part is the hard palate. ...
.
Structure
The lesser palatine arteries are branches of the
descending palatine artery
The descending palatine artery is a branch of the third part of the maxillary artery supplying the hard and soft palate.
Course
It descends through the greater palatine canal with the greater and lesser palatine branches of the pterygopalatine gan ...
. They go through the
lesser palatine foramina
Behind the greater palatine foramen is the pyramidal process of the palatine bone, perforated by one or more lesser palatine foramina which carry the lesser palatine nerve, and marked by the commencement of a transverse ridge, for the attachment of ...
.
They
anastomose
An anastomosis (, plural anastomoses) is a connection or opening between two things (especially cavities or passages) that are normally diverging or branching, such as between blood vessels, leaf veins, or streams. Such a connection may be normal ...
with the
ascending pharyngeal artery
The ascending pharyngeal artery is an artery in the neck that supplies the pharynx, developing from the proximal part of the embryonic second aortic arch.
It is the smallest branch of the external carotid and is a long, slender vessel, deeply sea ...
.
Function
The lesser palatine arteries give off tonsillary branches to supply the
palatine tonsils
Palatine tonsils, commonly called the tonsils and occasionally called the faucial tonsils, are tonsils located on the left and right sides at the back of the throat, which can often be seen as flesh-colored, pinkish lumps. Tonsils only present as ...
. They also gives off mucosal branches that usually supply the
soft palate
The soft palate (also known as the velum, palatal velum, or muscular palate) is, in mammals, the soft tissue constituting the back of the roof of the mouth. The soft palate is part of the palate of the mouth; the other part is the hard palate. ...
,
and potentially the
hard palate
The hard palate is a thin horizontal bony plate made up of two bones of the facial skeleton, located in the roof of the mouth. The bones are the palatine process of the maxilla and the horizontal plate of palatine bone. The hard palate spans ...
.
See also
*
Lesser palatine nerve
The lesser palatine nerves (posterior palatine nerve) are branches of the maxillary nerve (CN V2). They descends through the greater palatine canal alongside the greater palatine nerve, and emerge (separately) through the lesser palatine foramen to ...
References
Arteries of the head and neck
{{circulatory-stub