The palatovaginal canal (also pharyngeal canal) is a canal between the
sphenoid bone and the
palatine bone that connects the
nasopharynx
The pharynx (plural: pharynges) is the part of the throat behind the mouth and nasal cavity, and above the oesophagus and trachea (the tubes going down to the stomach and the lungs). It is found in vertebrates and invertebrates, though its struct ...
with the
pterygopalatine fossa
In human anatomy, the pterygopalatine fossa (sphenopalatine fossa) is a fossa in the skull. A human skull contains two pterygopalatine fossae—one on the left side, and another on the right side. Each fossa is a cone-shaped paired depression deep ...
. It transmits the pharyngeal branch of the third part of the maxillary artery (not to be confused 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 se ...
, a branch of external carotid). An inconstant vomerovaginal canal may lie between the ala of the vomer and the vaginal process of the sphenoid bone, medial to the palatovaginal canal, and lead into the anterior end of the palatovaginal canal.
Contents
The palatovaginal canal contains the
pharyngeal nerve
The pharyngeal nerve is a small branch of the maxillary nerve, arising from the posterior part of the pterygopalatine ganglion.
It passes through the palatovaginal canal with the pharyngeal branch of the maxillary artery, and is distributed to th ...
from the
pterygopalatine ganglion
The pterygopalatine ganglion (aka Meckel's ganglion, nasal ganglion, or sphenopalatine ganglion) is a parasympathetic ganglion found in the pterygopalatine fossa. It is largely innervated by the greater petrosal nerve (a branch of the facial n ...
and the pharyngeal branch of the
maxillary artery
The maxillary artery supplies deep structures of the face. It branches from the external carotid artery just deep to the neck of the mandible.
Structure
The maxillary artery, the larger of the two terminal branches of the external carotid artery, ...
. The pharyngeal nerve conveys sensory information from the mucosa of the nasopharyngeal posterior wall to the
maxillary nerve
In neuroanatomy, the maxillary nerve (V) is one of the three branches or divisions of the trigeminal nerve, the fifth (CN V) cranial nerve. It comprises the principal functions of sensation from the maxilla, nasal cavity, sinuses, the palat ...
passing through the pterygopalatine ganglion (without any synapse). The pharyngeal branch of the maxillary artery supplies part of the roof of the nasal fossae, nasopharynx, sphenoid sinuses and
Eustachian tube.
Structure
The opening to the palatovaginal canal in the nasal cavity is located near the lateral margin of the ala of the
vomer
The vomer (; lat, vomer, lit=ploughshare) is one of the unpaired facial bones of the skull. It is located in the midsagittal line, and articulates with the sphenoid, the ethmoid, the left and right palatine bones, and the left and right max ...
, at the roots of the
pterygoid process
The pterygoid processes of the sphenoid (from Greek ''pteryx'', ''pterygos'', "wing"), one on either side, descend perpendicularly from the regions where the body and the greater wings of the sphenoid bone unite.
Each process consists of a me ...
.
The other opening to the palatovaginal canal is located inferiorly and posteriorly in the pterygopalatine fossa.
References
External links
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Musculoskeletal system
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