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The mouth is the gateway to our body. It represents ~10% of human body volume; however, important functions rely on the mouth: eating, degustation, exploring the world as a child, chewing, digestion, tasting, biting, breathing through the mouth, vomiting, kissing, smiling, speaking, nonverbal communication, sex appeal, and social relations also depend on having a healthy and functional mouth. The teeth, tongue, gums, nerves, muscles, ligaments, veins, arteries, bones, connective tissue, and epithelia are organized in the complex structural array that constitutes the mouth. The mouth establishes anatomical relationships with other essential organs like the pharynx, the esophagus, the nose, the face, the ears, the orbits and, perhaps most important, the brain. The physiologic mouth boundary with the body is by far more complex. Just to mention that saliva is an extremely important defensive body fluid, released into the mouth by which innate and acquired immune mechanisms effectively defend the host against foreign insults. Saliva flow reduction indefectible results in increasing dental decay, periodontal disease, and oral ulcers.

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2012-06-21   |   430 visitas   |   Evalua este artículo 0 valoraciones

Vol. 42 Núm.4. Octubre-Diciembre 2011 Pags. 416-417. Colomb Med 2011; 42(4)