Anatomy Bones and Muscles · MU Pleven

173. Facial nerve.

Covers the facial nerve, the seventh cranial nerve, and its mixed motor, taste, sensory and parasympathetic functions. It lists the functional components with their brainstem nuclei, then traces the intratemporal and extracranial course through the facial canal, geniculate ganglion and stylomastoid foramen. It finishes with the intratemporal and extracranial branches, including the terminal branches within the parotid gland, and includes a mnemonic for the terminal branches.

Inside: 4 sections · 4 labelled pictures · 10 flashcards · 3 min

Topic 172 of 236 in the MU Pleven syllabus for Anatomy Bones and Muscles (Medicine, Year 2). The free AceMed note covers it in 4 sections, about 396 words (3 min of reading), with 10 flashcards.

In this note

  1. FACIAL NERVE
  2. Functional components & nuclei
  3. Course :
  4. Branches :

FACIAL NERVE

  • The facial nerve is the seventh cranial nerve (CN VII).
  • It is a mixed nerve responsible for various functions include:
  • Motor : to muscles that developed from the 2nd pharyngeal arch = muscles of facial expression + platysma, posterior belly of digastric m. + stylohyoid m.
  • Sensory : Carries special sensations (taste) from anterior 2/3 of the tongue and soft palate ← special sensory. It also carries general sensations from concha of the ear. → Somatic (general) sensory
  • Parasympathetic : to lacrimal gland + submandibular gland & sublingual salivary glands. (visceral motor)
  • The facial n. arise from two divisions : a motor root & a smaller sensory root. (Intermediate nerve)

Functional components & nuclei

Nuclei — Fibers

  1. 1. Motor nucleus - Special visceral Efferent (SVE)
  • ↳ at lower pontine tegmentum.
  • ↳ Its fibers loops around the abducent nerve nucleus forming (facial colliculus).
  1. 2. Superior salivatory nucleus. _ General Visceral Efferent (GVE)
  • ↳ Parasympathetic nuclei.
  1. 3. nucleus of Solitary tract _ Special Visceral Afferent (SVA) Sensory
  • ↳ From tongue anterior 2/3 → Geniculate ganglion → upper part of solitary nu.

tongue > SVA — G.G — solitary nucleus.

* Sensory fibers that carry information from peripheral receptor to the CNS often have associated ganglia.

  1. 4. Spinal nucleus of trigeminal nerve — General Somatic Afferent (GSA)
  • ↳ Sensory nucleus

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