soft palate

n.
The movable fold, consisting of muscular fibers enclosed in a mucous membrane, that is suspended from the rear of the hard palate and closes off the nasal cavity from the oral cavity during swallowing or sucking.

n

The structure composed of mucous membranes, muscular fibers, and mucous glands, suspended from the posterior border of the hard palate forming the roof of the mouth. When the soft palate rises, as in swallowing, it separates the nasal cavity and nasopharynx from the posterior part of the oral cavity and oral portion of the pharynx. In sucking the soft palate and posterior superior surface of the tongue occlude the oral cavity from the orapharynx, creating a posterior seal. Thus the soft palate prevents the escape of fluid and food up through the nose and with the tongue allows fluid and food to collect in the mouth until swallowed.

The fleshy partition at the back of the mouth which separates the nasopharynx from the oropharynx and which, together with the hard palate, forms the roof of the mouth.

• cleft s. p. — commonly the posterior part is defective but may be part of a defect involving both soft and hard palates. Manifested by difficulties in sucking or nasal regurgitation of milk and food from a young age. Often associated with entrapment of the palate by the aryepiglottic fold. See also cleft lip.
• s. p. dislocation — see dorsal soft palate displacement (below).
• dorsal s. p. displacement — the free edge of the soft palate is displaced from its normal position under the epiglottis to lie over the opening of the larynx causing reduction in airflow. Common only in horses.
• elongated s. p., overlong s. p. — a common abnormality in brachycephalic dogs in which it causes inspiratory respiratory distress, gagging and coughing. The soft palate interferes with the epiglottis and glottis, particularly after it becomes inflamed and edematous. Other anomalies of the respiratory tract commonly are also present. Affected horses appear to choke, then continue to breathe through their mouth with a characteristic rattling sound. The cause and pathogenesis are unclear.
• s. p. myositis — may contribute to soft palate paresis.
• s. p. paresis — causes a functional pharyngeal paresis and the affected horse chokes up during exercise; often accompanies laryngeal hemiplegia.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)