The lesser palatine nerves (posterior palatine nerve) are branches of 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 palate a ...
(CN V
2). They descends through the
greater palatine canal
The greater palatine canal (or pterygopalatine canal) is a passage in the skull that transmits the descending palatine artery, vein, and greater and lesser palatine nerves between the pterygopalatine fossa and the oral cavity.
Structure
The gre ...
alongside the greater palatine nerve, and emerge (separately) through the
lesser palatine foramen
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 o ...
to pass posteriorward.
They 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. ...
,
tonsil
The tonsils are a set of lymphoid organs facing into the aerodigestive tract, which is known as Waldeyer's tonsillar ring and consists of the adenoid tonsil, two tubal tonsils, two palatine tonsils, and the lingual tonsils. These organs play ...
,
and
uvula
The palatine uvula, usually referred to as simply the uvula, is a conic projection from the back edge of the middle of the soft palate, composed of connective tissue containing a number of racemose glands, and some muscular fibers. It also conta ...
.
See also
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Greater palatine nerve
The greater palatine nerve is a branch of the pterygopalatine ganglion. This nerve is also referred to as the anterior palatine nerve, due to its location anterior to the lesser palatine nerve. It carries both general sensory fibres from the maxi ...
References
External links
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Trigeminal nerve
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