Mnemonic

Palate Fusion Sequence

Mnemonic for the direction of palatal shelf fusion.

Expansion

Palatine shelves swing down then up then fuse, miss the timing, get the cleft

Expansion

  • Initial position - shelves hang vertically either side of the tongue
  • Rotation - shelves swing upward above the tongue
  • Fusion - shelves meet in the midline to form the secondary palate