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The epiglottis is made of elastic cartilage covered with a mucous membrane, attached to the entrance of the larynx. It projects upwards and backwards behind the tongue and the hyoid bone. The epiglottis may be inflamed in a condition called epiglottitis, which is most commonly due to the vaccine-preventable bacterium Haemophilus influenzae.
The anterior or lingual surface of the epiglottis is curved forward, and covered on its upper, free part by mucous membrane which is reflected on to the sides and root of the tongue, forming a median and two lateral glossoepiglottic folds; the lateral folds are partly attached to the wall of the pharynx.
The vestibular fold (ventricular fold, superior or false vocal cord) is one of two thick folds of mucous membrane, each enclosing a narrow band of fibrous tissue, the vestibular ligament, which is attached in front to the angle of the thyroid cartilage immediately below the attachment of the epiglottis, and behind to the antero-lateral surface of the arytenoid cartilage, a short distance above ...
The vestibular fold is formed by the vestibular ligament extending from the lateral walls of the epiglottis to the arytenoid cartilage covered with mucous membrane. The vocal fold is the upper free margin of the conus elasticus which is covered by mucous membrane. The conus elasticus or lateral ligament is the lateral thickened part of the ...
The epiglottic valleculae are paired spaces between the root of the tongue and anterior surface of the epiglottis. Each vallecula is bordered medially by the median glossoepiglottic fold and laterally by the lateral glossoepiglottic fold. The valleculae can collect saliva to prevent initiation of the swallowing reflex.
Covered by the aryepiglottic folds, the cuneiforms form the lateral aspect of the laryngeal inlet, while the corniculates form the posterior aspect, and the epiglottis the anterior. [ 4 ] Function of the cuneiform cartilages is to support the vocal folds and lateral aspects of the epiglottis.
The epiglottis closes the opening to the larynx during swallowing. The trachea begins to form in the second month of embryo development, becoming longer and more fixed in its position over time. Its epithelium is lined with column-shaped cells that have hair-like extensions called cilia, with scattered goblet cells that produce protective mucins.
In front, they are bounded by the epiglottis. Behind, they are bounded by the apices of the arytenoid cartilages , the corniculate cartilages , and the interarytenoid notch. [ 2 ] Within the posterior part of each aryepiglottic fold exists a cuneiform cartilage which forms a whitish prominence, the cuneiform tubercle.