The submandibular duct or Wharton duct or submaxillary duct, is one of the salivary excretory ducts. It is about 5 cm. long, and its wall is much thinner than that of the

parotid duct The parotid duct, or Stensen duct, is a salivary duct. It is the route that saliva takes from the major salivary gland, the parotid gland, into the mouth. Structure The parotid duct is formed when several interlobular ducts, the largest ducts in ...

. It drains saliva from each bilateral submandibular gland and sublingual gland to the sublingual caruncle in the floor of the mouth.

Structure

270px, Picture of the mouth showing the sublingual caruncle and related anatomical structures The submandibular duct arises from deep part of submandibular gland, a

salivary gland The salivary glands in mammals are exocrine glands that produce saliva through a system of ducts. Humans have three paired major salivary glands ( parotid, submandibular, and sublingual), as well as hundreds of minor salivary glands. Salivary ...

. It begins by numerous branches from the superficial surface of the gland, and runs forward between the mylohyoid,

hyoglossus The hyoglossus, thin and quadrilateral, arises from the side of the body and from the whole length of the greater cornu of the hyoid bone, and passes almost vertically upward to enter the side of the tongue, between the styloglossus and the inf ...

, and

genioglossus The genioglossus is one of the paired extrinsic muscles of the tongue. The genioglossus is the major muscle responsible for protruding (or sticking out) the tongue. Structure Genioglossus is the fan-shaped extrinsic tongue muscle that forms the ma ...

muscles. It then passes between the sublingual gland and the genioglossus and opens by a narrow opening on the summit of a small papilla (the "sublingual caruncle") at the side of the

frenulum of the tongue The frenulum of tongue or tongue web (also lingual frenulum or frenulum linguæ; also fraenulum) is a small fold of mucous membrane extending from the floor of the mouth to the midline of the underside of the tongue. Development The tongue start ...

. It lies superior to lingual and

hypoglossal nerve The hypoglossal nerve, also known as the twelfth cranial nerve, cranial nerve XII, or simply CN XII, is a cranial nerve that innervates all the extrinsic and intrinsic muscles of the tongue except for the palatoglossus, which is innervated by ...

Variation

The submandibular duct may be duplicated on one side or both sides, creating an accessory submandibular duct. Rarely, it may not perforate into the mouth.

Function

The submandibular ducts drain saliva from the submandibular gland, and the sublingual glands to the sublingual caruncles in the floor of the mouth

Clinical significance

Sialolithiasis

The submandibular duct may be affected by stones, known as

sialolithiasis Sialolithiasis (also termed salivary calculi, or salivary stones) is a crystallopathy where a calcified mass or ''sialolith'' forms within a salivary gland, usually in the duct of the submandibular gland (also termed "Wharton's duct"). Less common ...

. These may grow large, requiring surgery to remove. Simple

palpation Palpation is the process of using one's hands to check the body, especially while perceiving/diagnosing a disease or illness. Usually performed by a health care practitioner, it is the process of feeling an object in or on the body to determine ...

may be used to identify the location of any stones before surgery.

Imperforate

Rarely, the submandibular duct may not perforate into the mouth. Surgery may be used to repair this

birth defect A birth defect, also known as a congenital disorder, is an abnormal condition that is present at birth regardless of its cause. Birth defects may result in disabilities that may be physical, intellectual, or developmental. The disabilities ca ...

Drooling

The exit of the submandibular gland into the mouth may be realigned in patients who

drool Drooling, or slobbering, is the flow of saliva outside the mouth. Drooling can be caused by excess production of saliva, inability to retain saliva within the mouth (incontinence of saliva), or problems with swallowing (dysphagia or odynophagia) ...

. This redirects the exiting saliva away from the vestibule and the

lips The lips are the visible body part at the mouth of many animals, including humans. Lips are soft, movable, and serve as the opening for food intake and in the articulation of sound and speech. Human lips are a tactile sensory organ, and can be ...

. This surgery has a fairly high success rate. Rarely, the submandibular gland may need to be removed on one or both sides.

History

The submandibular duct was initially described by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

anatomist Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...

Thomas Wharton ( 1614-73) and is sometimes referred to by his name.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Glands of mouth Saliva