Glottis

The term refers to the glottis glottis. It is made from the vocal folds and the arytenoid cartilages. The medical name for the glottis is Rima glottis.

Anatomy

Basics

For the description of speech sounds or Phonationstypen width and length of the glottis in the cross-section of meaning. These usually one uses schematic representations that suggest the thyroid cartilage, the arytenoid cartilage as well as the vocal folds ( see Figure 1).

Functional Anatomy

The width of the glottis is essentially the positioning of the arytenoid cartilage (shown in Figure 1 as black triangles) dependent. The arytenoid cartilage can be brought together and moved apart, whereby the width of the glottis, such as by a small gap can be varied to a triangle. The arytenoid cartilage can also enjoy various rotational movements and thereby influence the width of the glottis as well as the ( in the schema can not be represented ) degree of tension of the vocal folds ( see Figure 2).

Function

The schematic representation of the glottis in longitudinal section ( Fig. 3) is used, inter alia in order to explain the aerodynamic processes of the vocal cord vibration. The opening of the glottis from the closed position (Fig. 3-1 ) out and return to the closed state (Fig. 3-6 ) in this case represent a cycle that repeats itself during the vibration. During this cycle, the vocal cords open by the rising air current gradually from below (Fig. 3-2 ) until they finally open ( Figure 3 - 3 4) and allow the passage of air. The deformed by the pressure of the vocal folds recur in drop of the pressure to its original shape and position ( Fig. 3-5 6) and change the shape of the glottis such that a negative pressure for a brief moment, which contributes to the vocal folds reunite. The dynamics of the pressure drop is attributed, inter alia, to the Bernoulli effect. The model of the cushion pipe is used, among other things, represent the vocal fold vibration and explain.