Hard Palate: What is it? Anatomy, Function and Pathologies

hard is the anterior region of the palate.

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Covered with mucosa (like the entire palate), the hard palate is distinguished from the soft palate by the presence of a bony component (to which the palatine and maxillary bones contribute) and the absence of muscles.
The hard palate borders on: the soft palate, posteriorly; the alveolar arch of the maxilla, at the level of the anterolateral margin; the nasal cavities, above; the oral cavity, below.
The hard palate presents only a "sensory innervation.
Reached only by nerves with a sensitive function, the hard palate contributes to correct chewing and, during phonation, guarantees the emission of palatal consonants.
Cleft palate deserves a mention among the most well-known pathologies that can affect the hard palate.

and mucous tissue, the palate can be divided into two regions: an anterior region, which corresponds to the theme of this article, that is the hard palate, and a posterior region, which is equivalent to the aforementioned soft palate.

Although hardly distinguishable to the eye, the hard and soft palates are quite different from each other; under the mucosa covering common to both, in fact, the hard palate has a bony component, which in the soft palate is completely absent and replaced, in a certain sense, by a component of a muscular nature.

• The hard palate is the anterior portion of the palate, while the soft palate is the posterior portion of the palate;
• The hard palate is composed of a bony component, which, in the soft palate, is absent and replaced by a set of muscles;
• The hard palate presents an exclusively sensory innervation, while the soft palate presents both a sensory and motor innervation.