‘Tubarial Glands’ and Minor Salivary Glands - Anatomy, Physiology, Pathology, and Radiology

There are about 500-1000 minor salivary glands in the body, and most of them are located in the oral cavity or oropharynx. They are small and embedded in the aero-digestive tract entrance of the head and neck region. Minor salivary glands located in the nasopharynx are relatively less in number and the major pathologies associated with these glands are rare. Tubarial gland or tubarial salivary gland is recently reported as a pair of macroscopic salivary glands in the nasopharynx. The remote location of the glands, the rarity of major pathologies involved, and non-recognized functional significance might have made them elusive before. A brief review of minor salivary glands and tubarial glands is attempted. It is an evolving field in medicine, pathology, and characterization of diseases of the nasopharynx especially the diseases of salivary gland origin have gained renewed interest recently.