Terminal sulcus of tongue

The terminal sulcus of the tongue is a shallow V shaped groove on the upper surface of the tongue.

The dorsum of the tongue is convex and marked by a median sulcus, which divides it into symmetrical halves; this sulcus ends about 2.5 cm. from the root of the organ, in a depression called the foramen cecum, from which a shallow groove, the terminal sulcus, runs laterally and forward on either side to the margin of the tongue.

The terminal sulcus divides the tongue into pharyngeal and oral parts. The pharyngeal part is supplied by glossopharyngeal nerve and the oral part is supplied by the lingual nerve (a branch of the mandibular branch (V3) of the trigeminal nerve) for somatosensory perception and by the chorda tympani (a branch of the facial nerve) for taste perception.

Additional Images

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  Terminal sulcus of tongue

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  Terminal sulcus of tongue

References

This article incorporates text in the public domain from the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

External links

• Overview and diagram at mednote.co.kr