Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- Pertaining to the pterygoid process of the sphenoid, or to the pterygoid bone, and to the palate or palateone: as, the pterygopalatine branch of the internal maxillary artery.
- The posterior palatine canal.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the pterygoid processes and the palatine bones.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective anatomy Of or pertaining to the
indented areamedial to thepterygomaxillary fissure leading into thesphenopalatine foramen .
Etymologies
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Examples
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While in the pterygopalatine canal, it gives off posterior inferior nasal branches, which enter the nasal cavity through openings in the palatine bone, and ramify over the inferior nasal concha and middle and inferior meatuses; at its exit from the canal, a palatine branch is distributed to both surfaces of the soft palate.
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Through the inferior orbital fissure the orbit communicates with the temporal, infratemporal, and pterygopalatine fossæ; the fissure transmits the maxillary nerve and its zygomatic branch, the infraorbital vessels, the ascending branches from the sphenopalatine ganglion, and a vein which connects the inferior ophthalmic vein with the pterygoid venous plexus.
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It then crosses the pterygopalatine fossa, inclines lateralward on the back of the maxilla, and enters the orbit through the inferior orbital fissure; it traverses the infraorbital groove and canal in the floor of the orbit, and appears upon the face at the infraorbital foramen.
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The sphenopalatine ganglion, the largest of the sympathetic ganglia associated with the branches of the trigeminal nerve, is deeply placed in the pterygopalatine fossa, close to the sphenopalatine foramen.
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The anterior palatine nerve (n. palatinus anterior) descends through the pterygopalatine canal, emerges upon the hard palate through the greater palatine foramen, and passes forward in a groove in the hard palate, nearly as far as the incisor teeth.
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Finally, it enters the pterygopalatine fossa, and joins the posterior angle of the sphenopalatine ganglion.
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The Zygomatic Nerve (n. zygomaticus; temporomalar nerve; orbital nerve) arises in the pterygopalatine fossa, enters the orbit by the inferior orbital fissure, and divides at the back of that cavity into two branches, zygomaticotemporal and zygomaticofacial.
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The pharyngeal nerve (pterygopalatine nerve) is a small branch arising from the posterior part of the ganglion.
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Its branches may be divided into four groups, according as they are given off in the cranium, in the pterygopalatine fossa, in the infraorbital canal, or on the face.
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The posterior palatine nerve (n. palatinus posterior) descends through the pterygopalatine canal, and emerges by a separate opening behind the greater palatine foramen; it supplies the soft palate, tonsil, and uvula.
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