Mandibular nerve

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Nerve: Mandibular nerve
Mandibular division of the trifacial nerve.
Mandibular division of trifacial nerve, seen from the middle line. The small figure is an enlarged view of the otic ganglion.
Latin	n. mandibularis
Gray's	subject #200 893
Innervates
From	trigeminal nerve
To
MeSH	A08.800.800.120.760.500

The mandibular nerve (V₃) is the largest of the three branches of the trigeminal nerve.

Structure

Roots

It is made up of two roots:

• a large sensory root proceeding from the inferior angle of the trigeminal ganglion.
• a small motor root (the motor part of the trigeminal), which passes beneath the ganglion, and unites with the sensory root, just after its exit through the foramen ovale.

Path

The two roots (sensory and motor) exit the middle cranial fossa through the foramen ovale. The two roots then combine. The nerve descends, soon splitting into an anterior division and a posterior division.

Immediately beneath the base of the skull, the nerve gives off from its medial side a recurrent branch (nervus spinosus) and the nerve to the medial pterygoid muscle, and then divides into two trunks, an anterior and a posterior.

Branches

The mandibular nerve gives off the following branches:

• From the main trunk of the nerve (before the division)
  • nervus spinosus (meningeal branch)
  • medial pterygoid nerve
  • nerve to tensor tympani
  • nerve to tensor veli palatini
• From the anterior division
  • masseteric nerve
  • deep temporal nerves (anterior and posterior)
  • buccal nerve (a sensory nerve)
  • lateral pterygoid nerve
• From the posterior division
  • auriculotemporal nerve
  • lingual nerve
  • inferior alveolar nerve
  • motor branch to mylohyoid and anterior belly of digastric muscles (mylohyoid nerve)

The mandibular nerve also gives off branches to the otic ganglion

Supplies

The mandibular nerve innervates:

• mucous membrane of the anterior two-thirds of the tongue
• the inside of the cheek (the buccal mucosa)
• teeth and gums of the mandible
• skin of the temporal region
• auricula
• lower lip, and chin
• muscles of mastication
• the muscles tensor tympani and tensor veli palatini

See also

• Ophthalmic nerve
• Maxillary nerve

Additional images

Dermatome distribution of the trigeminal nerve

The nerves of the scalp, face, and side of neck.

External links

• MedEd at Loyola GrossAnatomy/h_n/cn/cn1/cnb3.htm
• SUNY Figs 27:03-02
• Norman/Georgetown cranialnerves (V)

Nerves of head and neck: the cranial nerves

I-IV: olfactory - optic - oculomotor - trochlear

V: trigeminal: trigeminal ganglion
V1: ophthalmic: lacrimal - frontal (supratrochlear, supraorbital) - nasociliary (long root of ciliary, long ciliary, infratrochlear, posterior ethmoidal, anterior ethmoidal) - ciliary ganglion (short ciliary)
V2: maxillary: middle meningeal - in the pterygopalatine fossa (zygomatic, zygomaticotemporal, zygomaticofacial, sphenopalatine, posterior superior alveolar)
in the infraorbital canal/infraorbital nerve (middle superior alveolar, anterior superior alveolar)
on the face (inferior palpebral, external nasal, superior labial, infraorbital plexus) - pterygopalatine ganglion (deep petrosal, nerve of pterygoid canal)
branches of distribution (palatine, nasopalatine, pharyngeal)
V3: mandibular: nervus spinosus - medial pterygoid - anterior (masseteric, deep temporal, buccal, lateral pterygoid)
posterior (auriculotemporal, lingual, inferior alveolar, mylohyoid, mental) - otic ganglion - submandibular ganglion

VI: abducens

VII: facial: nervus intermedius - geniculate - inside facial canal (greater petrosal, nerve to the stapedius, chorda tympani)
at exit from stylomastoid foramen (posterior auricular, digastric - stylohyoid)
on face (temporal, zygomatic, buccal, mandibular, cervical)

VIII: vestibulocochlear: cochlear (striae medullares, lateral lemniscus) - vestibular

IX: glossopharyngeal: fasciculus solitarius - nucleus ambiguus - ganglia (superior, petrous) - tympanic - carotid sinus

X: vagus: ganglia (jugular, nodose) - Alderman's nerve - in the neck (pharyngeal branch, superior laryngeal ext and int, recurrent laryngeal)
in the thorax (pulmonary branches, esophageal plexus) - in the abdomen (gastric plexuses, celiac plexus, gastric plexus)

XI: accessory XII: hypoglossal

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