Passage of the bolus into the esophagus is followed by opening of the vestibule, mostly from elastic recoil of the epiglottis, and then opening of the glottis by the posterior cricoarytenoid muscle.

Anatomically, swallowing has been divided into three phases: oral, pharyngeal, and esophageal ... epiglottis swings down to cover the laryngeal vestibule. These actions seal the airway from ...