Part 2 book “Diseases of the brain, head and neck, spine 2016–2019” has contents: Cerebral infections, extramucosal spaces of the head and neck, degenerative spinal disease , spinal trauma and spinal cord injury, spinal cord inflammatory and demyelinating diseases, and other contents. | Oral Cavity, Larynx, and Pharynx Martin G. Mack and Hugh D. Curtin Imaging of the oral cavity, the larynx, and the pharynx must be coordinated with the clinical exam [1, 2]. The information acquired at imaging usually emphasizes the deeper tissues as the superficial assessment is done by direct visualization. The description of the anatomy is key to description of any lesion. Pharynx The pharynx consists of the nasopharynx, the oropharynx, and the hypopharynx. Nasopharynx Anatomy Oral Cavity The oral cavity extends from the lips and oral fissure to the oropharyngeal isthmus. It is bounded anteriorly and laterally by the lips and cheeks. The roof of the oral cavity consists of the hard and soft palate, and its floor is formed by the muscular oral floor and the structures it supports. The tongue occupies almost all of the oral cavity when the mouth is closed, its upper surface lying against the palate. The musculature of the tongue consists of intrinsic muscles as well as extrinsic muscles that are inserted into the tongue. The posterior limit of the oral cavity is made up of the anterior tonsillar pillars and the circumvallate papillae along the dorsum of the tongue. The floor of the mouth is inferior to the tongue. Immediately inferior to the mucosal is the sublingual gland in the sublingual pace. The mylohyoid muscle supports the floor of the mouth with the geniohyoid/genioglossal muscle complex vertically segmenting the soft tissues above the mylohyoid. The nasopharynx is the upper portion of the pharynx. The sphenoid bone forms the roof of the nasopharynx, while the floor and junction with the oropharynx are at the level of the soft palate. These anatomic relationships are best seen on sagittal and coronal sections. The pharyngeal recess (fossa of Rosenmüller) is a pouch-like recess in the lateral wall of the nasopharynx directed toward the parapharyngeal space and lying directly adjacent to the torus tubarius and the eustachian tube orifice. Many .
