Hard palate
Palatum durum
DigestiveOrgansHead
- What it is
- Bony front two-thirds of the roof of the mouth (palatine processes of the maxillae and horizontal plates of the palatine bones) covered by firm mucosa with a midline raphe and transverse ridges called palatine rugae.
- Function
- Separates the mouth from the nasal cavity and gives the tongue a rigid surface to press food against while chewing and swallowing.
- Size
- About 5 cm long and 3.5-4 cm wide between the teeth; the vault is 1-1.5 cm high.
- Clinical note
- Incomplete fusion of the two palatal shelves in the embryo causes cleft palate, one of the most common birth defects; it disturbs feeding and speech until repaired.