Vallecula - Anatomy, Boundaries, Nerve Supply & Clinical Significance

🧠 Vallecula - Anatomy, Nerve Supply & Clinical Significance

The vallecula is a small but clinically significant part of the pharyngeal anatomy.

Though often overlooked, it plays a key role in airway reflexes, transoral surgeries, and can be a common site of pathology and foreign body lodgement.

📍 What is the Vallecula?

The vallecula refers to cup-shaped depressions located between the base of the tongue and the anterior surface of the epiglottis.

• There are two valleculae, one on either side of the median glossoepiglottic fold.

• These depressions are visible during laryngoscopy, especially in intubation or endoscopic procedures.

🧩 Boundaries of Vallecula

🧠 Nerve Supply of Vallecula

Which nerve is Internal Laryngeal nerve a branch of?

⚕️ Clinical Importance of Vallecula

✅ 1. Gag Reflex

• Afferent limb: Glossopharyngeal nerve (IX)
• Efferent limb: Vagus nerve (X) via pharyngeal branches
• Clinical use: Testing gag reflex helps assess integrity of CN IX and X.

💡 Note: Stimulation of vallecula during procedures (e.g., intubation) can trigger gagging indicating this pathway is intact.

✅ 2. Airway Anesthesia & Awake Intubation

• During awake fibreoptic intubation, internal laryngeal nerve is blocked by injecting local anesthetic through the thyrohyoid membrane.
• This suppresses gagging and coughing, enabling smoother procedures.

✅ 3. Foreign Body Lodgement

• Due to its cup shape and location, the vallecula is a common site for foreign bodies like:

  • Fish bones
  • Food particles

• Symptoms include:

  • Persistent foreign body sensation
  • Gagging, coughing, and choking

• Often visualized using indirect or direct laryngoscopy.

✅ 4. Vallecular Cysts & Lesions

• Common site for:

  • Mucous retention cysts
  • Squamous cell carcinoma

• Symptoms:

  • Foreign body sensation
  • Odynophagia (painful swallowing)
  • Voice changes (if internal laryngeal nerve involved)

🧠 Summary Points

• Valleculae are cup-shaped spaces between the tongue base and epiglottis.
• Bound by glossoepiglottic folds – median and lateral (pharyngoepiglottic).
• Supplied by IX and X cranial nerves.
• Clinically important for gag reflex, airway blocks, and as a site of foreign body and lesions.

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