Pharyngeal mucosal space
The pharyngeal (or superficial) mucosal space is a deep compartment of the head and neck, located between the fascia of the pharyngeal constrictor muscles (buccopharyngeal or visceral fascia) and the mucosal surface of the nasopharynx, oropharynx, and hypopharynx.
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Terminology
Not a true anatomic fascial space, the pharyngeal mucosal space was coined in the radiology literature to complete the spatial map of the neck 4. The concept may be confusing in two ways. First, pathology involving the pharyngeal "mucosal space" is not limited to the mucosa and can be primarily submucosal 5,7. Second, the proximal and distal limits are unclear: various authors have arbitrarily expanded or limited the pharyngeal mucosal space to include the oral cavity and/or exclude all or part of the hypopharynx as it is inferior to the hyoid bone 4-7. In the latter definitions, the visceral space is the infrahyoid continuation that includes most of the hypopharynx 5,6.
Rather than citing the pharyngeal mucosal space in radiology reporting and communications with surgeons, a practical alternative is localizing pathology to the "nasopharynx", "oropharynx", or "hypopharynx" and their anatomic subsites.
Gross anatomy
The pharyngeal mucosal space is the deepest compartment (closest to the airway) of the head and neck, circumscribed by the middle (visceral, buccopharyngeal, pretracheal, pharyngomucosal) layer of the deep cervical fascia 1,4. It extends from the base of the skull to the cricoid cartilage 2.
Contents
- squamous mucosa
- lymphoid tissue of Waldeyer's ring (adenoidal, palatine, and lingual tonsils)
- minor salivary glands
- cartilaginous portion of the Eustachian tube
- superior pharyngeal constrictor
- middle pharyngeal constrictor
- levator veli palatini
Relations
- medial to the parapharyngeal space 3
- anterior to the retropharyngeal space 3
- includes the peritonsillar space 4
Boundaries
The pharyngeal mucosal space is internal to the middle layer of deep cervical fascia:
- superior margin: merging of the middle layer of deep cervical fascia with the aponeurosis of the superior pharyngeal constrictor muscle 2
- inferior margin: cricoid cartilage
Related pathology
Related Radiopaedia articles
Anatomy: Head and neck
- skeleton of the head and neck
-
cranial vault
- scalp (mnemonic)
- fontanelle
-
sutures
- calvarial
- facial
- frontozygomatic suture
- frontomaxillary suture
- frontolacrimal suture
- frontonasal suture
- temporozygomatic suture
- zygomaticomaxillary suture
- parietotemporal suture (parietomastoid suture)
- occipitotemporal suture (occipitomastoid suture)
- sphenofrontal suture
- sphenozygomatic suture
- spheno-occipital suture (not a true suture)
- lacrimomaxillary suture
- nasomaxillary suture
- internasal suture
- basal/internal
- skull landmarks
- frontal bone
- temporal bone
- parietal bone
- occipital bone
- skull base (foramina)
-
facial bones
- midline single bones
- paired bilateral bones
- cervical spine
- hyoid bone
- laryngeal cartilages
-
cranial vault
- muscles of the head and neck
- muscles of the tongue (mnemonic)
- muscles of mastication
-
muscles of facial expression
- occipitalis muscle
- circumorbital and palpebral muscles
- nasal muscles
- buccolabial muscles
- elevators, retractors and evertors of the upper lip
- levator labii superioris alaeque nasalis muscle
- levator labii superioris muscle
- zygomaticus major muscle
- zygomaticus minor muscle
- malaris muscle
- levator anguli oris muscle
- risorius muscle
- depressors, retractors and evertors of the lower lip
- depressor labii inferioris muscle
- depressor anguli oris muscle
- mentalis muscle
- compound sphincter
- orbicularis oris muscle
- incisivus superior muscle
- incisivus inferior muscle
- muscle of mastication:
- elevators, retractors and evertors of the upper lip
- muscles of the middle ear
- orbital muscles
- muscles of the soft palate
- pharyngeal muscles
- suprahyoid muscles
- infrahyoid muscles
- intrinsic muscles of the larynx
- muscles of the neck
- accessory muscles of the neck
- deep cervical fascia
-
deep spaces of the neck
- anterior cervical space
- buccal space
- carotid space
- danger space
- deep cervical fascia
- infratemporal fossa
- masticator space
- parapharyngeal space
- stylomandibular tunnel
- parotid space
- pharyngeal (superficial) mucosal space
- perivertebral space
- posterior cervical space
- pterygopalatine fossa
- retropharyngeal space
- suprasternal space (of Burns)
- visceral space
- surgical triangles of the neck
- orbit
- ear
- paranasal sinuses
- nose
- oral cavity
- pharynx
- larynx
- viscera of the neck
- blood supply of the head and neck
-
arterial supply
-
common carotid artery
- carotid body
- carotid bifurcation
- subclavian artery
- variants
-
common carotid artery
- venous drainage
-
arterial supply
- innervation of the head and neck
-
cranial nerves
- olfactory nerve (CN I)
- optic nerve (CN II)
- oculomotor nerve (CN III)
- trochlear nerve (CN IV)
-
trigeminal nerve (CN V) (mnemonic)
- trigeminal ganglion
- ophthalmic division
- maxillary division
- mandibular division
- abducens nerve (CN VI)
- facial nerve (CN VII)
-
vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII)
- vestibular ganglion (Scarpa's ganglion)
- glossopharyngeal nerve (CN IX)
-
vagus nerve (CN X)
- superior laryngeal nerve
- recurrent laryngeal nerve (inferior laryngeal nerve)
- (spinal) accessory nerve (CN XI)
- hypoglossal nerve (CN XII)
- parasympathetic ganglia of the head and neck
- greater occipital nerve
- third occipital nerve
-
cervical plexus
- muscular branches
- longus capitis
- longus colli
- scalenes
- geniohyoid
- thyrohyoid
-
ansa cervicalis
- omohyoid (superior and inferior bellies separately)
- sternothyroid
- sternohyoid
- phrenic nerve
- contribution to the accessory nerve (CN XI)
- cutaneous branches
- muscular branches
- brachial plexus
- pharyngeal plexus
-
cranial nerves
- lymphatic drainage of the head and neck
- embryological development of the head and neck
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