Facial Nerve & Parotid Gland
Facial Nerve & Parotid Gland
Facial Nerve & Parotid Gland
Mr. M. Banda
University of Zambia
Facial Nerve: Objectives
• Origin
• Course
• Branches
• Clinical correlates
Introduction
• CN VII is the nerve of the
2nd pharyngeal arch
• Supplies all the muscles
that develop from the
mesoderm of 2nd
pharyngeal arch
• CN VII is a mixed nerve
Facial Nerve
Foramen:
•Internal Acoustic Meatus
Fiber Type:
•Special sensory (taste)
•General sensory
•Branchiomotor -
Parasympathetic motor
Origin
Facial nucleus:
- muscles of facial expression
- post belly of digastric,
- stylohyoid and stapedius
Parasympathetic nerve fibers:
- Superior salivatory nucleus
- Lacrimal nucleus
Nucleus of tractus solitarius
- Taste sensation for anterior 2/3rd of
tongue
Spinal trigiminal nucleus
- General sensations from the skin of the
concha of the auricle and the ext
auditory meatus
FACIAL NERVE
Internal acoustic
meatus Geniculate ganglion
(taste 1st order cell bodies)
Branchial motor
nucleus
Greater petrosal
Sup. salivary nerve
nucleus Chorda tympani
nerve Nerve to
Nucleus of
Nervous stapedius
intermedius Ear drum
Tractus Stylomastoid
solitarious foramen
foramen pterygoid
to lacerum canal nerve of
stapedius pter. canal
auricular
branch pterygopalatine
chorda gang.
tympani
buccal branches
stylomastoid foramen
mandibular
branch anterior 2/3
of tongue
cervical
branch
submandibular
motor to skeletal muscles = parasymp. gland
motor to cardiac and smooth muscle =
sensory (afferent) =
Autonomic Lacrimal Fibers
Facial Nerve
Presynaptic Parasympathetic
CN VII provides presynaptic parasympathetic fibers to the pterygopalatine ganglion for
innervation of the lacrimal mucous glands and to the submandibular ganglion for
innervation of the sublingual and submandibular salivary glands. The pterygopalatine
ganglion is associated with the maxillary nerve (CN V 2), which distributes its
postsynaptic fibers, whereas the submandibular ganglion is associated with the
mandibular nerve (CN V3). Parasympathetic fibers synapse in these ganglia, whereas
sympathetic and other fibers pass through them.
General Sensory Some fibers from the geniculate ganglion supply a small area of the
skin of the concha of the auricle, close to external acoustic meatus.
Taste (Special Sensory) Fibers carried by the chorda tympani join the lingual nerve to
convey taste sensation from the anterior two thirds of the tongue and soft palate.
Facial Nerve
• The temporal branch ascends to supply the
auricular muscles and frontalis.
• The zygomatic branch is directed towards the
eye and supplies muscles above and below the
palpebral fissure.
• The buccal runs horizontally forwards to
innervate buccinator and the muscles of the
upper lip.
• The mandibular branch supplies the muscles of
the lower lip
• The cervical branch descends to supply the
platysma
Relationship of the facial nerve and the parotid
gland
• The intimate relationships
between the facial nerve
[VII] and the parotid gland
mean that surgical removal
of the parotid gland is a
difficult dissection if all
branches of the facial
nerve are to be spared.
Facial Nerve Lesion