The pterygopalatine fossa is a small pyramidal space between the back of the maxilla, the pterygoid process of the sphenoid and the perpendicular plate of the palatine bone. It contains the maxillary nerve, the pterygopalatine ganglion and the terminal part of the maxillary artery, and it communicates with the orbit, nasal cavity, mouth, infratemporal fossa and middle cranial fossa.
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| Ossification | Its walls are formed by the maxilla and palatine bone (membrane) and the pterygoid process of the sphenoid (mainly membrane), all ossifying in fetal life. |
Because of its many connections, the fossa is a crossroads for the spread of infection and tumours, such as juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma, which characteristically widens it. Posterior nosebleeds may be controlled by ligating the sphenopalatine artery, and the pterygopalatine ganglion can be blocked for cluster headache.
A vascular tumour of adolescent males that arises near the sphenopalatine foramen and expands into the fossa, causing nosebleeds and nasal obstruction.
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