Minor sublingual ducts
Ductus sublinguales minores
- Eponym: Ducts of Rivinus
Definition
The excretory ducts of sublingual glands are from eight to twenty in number. Of the smaller sublingual ducts, (minor sublingual ducts; ducts of Rivinus), some join the submaxillary duct; others open separately into the mouth, on the elevated crest of mucous membrane (plica sublingualis), caused by the projection of the gland, on either side of the frenulum linguæ. One or more join to form the major sublingual duct (duct of Bartholin), which opens into the submaxillary duct.
References
This definition incorporates text from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy (20th U.S. edition of Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body, published in 1918 – from http://www.bartleby.com/107/).