Patent nasopalatine ducts: Evidence to support persistence of the vomeronasal system?

Abstract

The vomeronasal system is comprised of the nasopalatine duct and the vomeronasal organ. While this system functions in chemodetection in mammals, its presence and function in adult humans remains to be clearly elucidated. Here, a case of asymptomatic, bilateral, patent nasopalatine ducts is presented. We postulate that the presence of these patent structures represents persistence of the embryological nasopalatine duct component of the vomeronasal organ into adult life.