Mouth, Palate & Tongue

Mouth

Oral cavity, mucosa lined cavity.

Vestibule

The slit between the teeth and the cheecks/lips.

Oral Cavity Proper

The region of the mouth that lies internal to the teeth.

Labia

Lips. Keeps the food inside the mouth during chewing and is composed of a core of skeletal muscle covered by skin.

Labial Frenulum

A median fold that connects the internal aspect of each lip to the gum.

Palate

Forms the roof of the mouth and is separated into two parts.

Hard Palate

Anteriorly is bony hard, rigid surface against which the tongue forces food during chewing.

Soft Palate

The posterior, muscular, mobile flap that rises to close off the nasopharynx during swallowing.

Palatoglossal Arches

Anchor the soft palate to the tongue.

Palatopharyngeal Arches

Anchor the soft palate to the wall of the oropharynx.

Uvula

Closes off the nasopharynx and prevents food from entering the nasal cavity during swallowing.

Tongue

A muscle constructed of interlacing fascicles of skeletal muscle fibers. Functions to grip food, re-position it between teeth, mixes food with saliva forming food into a mass called bolus, moves food posteriorly to push bolus into the pharynx, helps with

Intrinsic Muscles

Confined within the tongue and not attached to bone. Change the shape of the tongue.

Extrinsic Muscles

Extend to the tongue from bones in the skull and hyoid bone and alter the position of the tongue.

Lingual Frenulum

Secures the tongue to the floor of the mouth and limits its posterior movements.

Filiform Papillae

Roughen the tongue so it can grasp and manipulate food during chewing; no taste buds and whitish appearance.

Fungiform Papillae

Scattered across the tongue and they contain taste buds and give a red color.

Vallate Papillae

10-12 large, at the back of the tongue in a V-shape; contain taste buds.