The inferior nasal concha (inferior turbinated bone or inferior turbinal/turbinate) is one of the three paired
nasal concha
In anatomy, a nasal concha (), plural conchae (), also called a nasal turbinate or turbinal, is a long, narrow, curled shelf of bone that protrudes into the breathing passage of the nose in humans and various animals. The conchae are shaped lik ...
e in the
nose
A nose is a protuberance in vertebrates that houses the nostrils, or nares, which receive and expel air for respiration alongside the mouth. Behind the nose are the olfactory mucosa and the sinuses. Behind the nasal cavity, air next passe ...
. It extends horizontally along the lateral wall of the
nasal cavity
The nasal cavity is a large, air-filled space above and behind the nose in the middle of the face. The nasal septum divides the cavity into two cavities, also known as fossae. Each cavity is the continuation of one of the two nostrils. The nasal ...
and consists of a
lamina of spongy
bone
A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, ...
, curled upon itself like a scroll, (''turbinate'' meaning inverted cone).
The inferior nasal conchae are considered a pair of facial bones. As the air passes through the turbinates, the air is churned against these mucosa-lined bones in order to receive warmth, moisture and cleansing. Superior to inferior nasal concha are the
middle nasal concha
The medial surface of the labyrinth of ethmoid consists of a thin lamella, which descends from the under surface of the cribriform plate, and ends below in a free, convoluted margin, the middle nasal concha (middle nasal turbinate).
It is rough, ...
and
superior nasal concha which both arise from the
ethmoid bone, of the cranial portion of the skull.
Hence, these two are considered as a part of the cranial bones.
It has two surfaces, two borders, and two extremities.
Structure
Surfaces
The medial surface is
convex
Convex or convexity may refer to:
Science and technology
* Convex lens, in optics
Mathematics
* Convex set, containing the whole line segment that joins points
** Convex polygon, a polygon which encloses a convex set of points
** Convex polytop ...
, perforated by numerous apertures, and traversed by longitudinal grooves for the lodgement of vessels.
The lateral surface is
concave
Concave or concavity may refer to:
Science and technology
* Concave lens
* Concave mirror
Mathematics
* Concave function, the negative of a convex function
* Concave polygon, a polygon which is not convex
* Concave set
In geometry, a subset o ...
, and forms part of the
inferior meatus.
Borders
Its upper border is thin, irregular, and connected to various bones along the lateral wall of the nasal cavity.
It may be divided into three portions: of these,
* the ''anterior'' articulates with the conchal crest of the
maxilla
The maxilla (plural: ''maxillae'' ) in vertebrates is the upper fixed (not fixed in Neopterygii) bone of the jaw formed from the fusion of two maxillary bones. In humans, the upper jaw includes the hard palate in the front of the mouth. T ...
;
* the ''posterior'' with the conchal crest of the
palatine;
* the ''middle'' portion presents three well-marked
processes
A process is a series or set of activities that interact to produce a result; it may occur once-only or be recurrent or periodic.
Things called a process include:
Business and management
*Business process, activities that produce a specific se ...
, which vary much in their size and form.
** Of these, the anterior or
lacrimal process is small and pointed and is situated at the junction of the anterior fourth with the posterior three-fourths of the bone: it articulates, by its apex, with the descending process of the
lacrimal bone, and, by its margins, with the groove on the back of the frontal process of the maxilla, and thus assists in forming the canal for the
nasolacrimal duct
The nasolacrimal duct (also called the tear duct) carries tears from the lacrimal sac of the eye into the nasal cavity. The duct begins in the eye socket between the maxillary and lacrimal bones, from where it passes downwards and backwards. T ...
.
** Behind this process a broad, thin plate, the
ethmoidal process, ascends to join the uncinate process of the ethmoid; from its lower border a thin lamina, the
maxillary process, curves downward and lateralward; it articulates with the maxilla and forms a part of the medial wall of the
maxillary sinus
The pyramid-shaped maxillary sinus (or antrum of Highmore) is the largest of the paranasal sinuses, and drains into the middle meatus of the nose through the osteomeatal complex.Human Anatomy, Jacobs, Elsevier, 2008, page 209-210
Structure
It i ...
.
The inferior border is free, thick, and cellular in structure, more especially in the middle of the bone.
Extremities
Both extremities are more or less pointed, the posterior being the more tapering.
Development
The inferior nasal concha is ossified from a single center, which appears about the fifth month of fetal life in the lateral wall of the
cartilaginous nasal capsule.
Additional images
File:Gray171.png, Right inferior nasal concha. Medial surface.
File:Gray172.png, Right inferior nasal concha. Lateral surface.
File:Slide2hal.JPG, Human skull. Inferior nasal concha.
See also
*
Empty nose syndrome
*
Nasal concha
In anatomy, a nasal concha (), plural conchae (), also called a nasal turbinate or turbinal, is a long, narrow, curled shelf of bone that protrudes into the breathing passage of the nose in humans and various animals. The conchae are shaped lik ...
References
External links
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{{Authority control
Bones of the head and neck