The tracheoesophageal septum is an embryological structure. It is formed from the tracheoesophageal folds or ridges which fuse in the midline. It divides the oesophagus from the trachea during

prenatal development Prenatal development () includes the development of the embryo and of the fetus during a viviparous animal's gestation. Prenatal development starts with fertilization, in the germinal stage of embryonic development, and continues in fetal devel ...

. Developmental abnormalities can lead to a tracheoesophageal fistula.

Structure

The tracheoesophageal septum is formed from the tracheoesophageal folds laterally (longitudinal ridges), which fuse in the midline. It divides the oesophagus from the trachea. This is complete by 6 weeks of

gestation Gestation is the period of development during the carrying of an embryo, and later fetus, inside viviparous animals (the embryo develops within the parent). It is typical for mammals, but also occurs for some non-mammals. Mammals during pregna ...

. It divides the

foregut tube The foregut is the anterior part of the alimentary canal, from the mouth to the duodenum at the entrance of the bile duct. Beyond the stomach, the foregut is attached to the abdominal walls by mesentery. The foregut arises from the endoderm, devel ...

: the

laryngotracheal tube The laryngotracheal groove is a precursor for the larynx and trachea. The rudiment of the respiratory organs appears as a median longitudinal groove in the ventral wall of the pharynx. The groove deepens and its lips fuse to form a septum which gr ...

ventrally and oesophagus dorsally.Development of the Digestive System

Function

The tracheoesophageal septum divides the oesophagus from the trachea during

Clinical significance

Developmental abnormalities of the tracheoesophageal septum can lead to a tracheoesophageal fistula. This may be caused by certain

mutations In biology, a mutation is an alteration in the nucleic acid sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extrachromosomal DNA. Viral genomes contain either DNA or RNA. Mutations result from errors during DNA or viral replication, mi ...

genes In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...

involved in its development. Other theories for the origin of tracheoesophageal fistula have been suggested. A laryngotracheal cleft is a related abnormality.

References

{{Development of digestive system Human head and neck Embryology of digestive system