Head and neck nerves in 3D

How the head and neck are innervated

The olfactory, optic and vestibulocochlear nerves serve smell, vision, hearing and balance. The oculomotor, trochlear and abducens nerves move the eye. The trigeminal nerve supplies the skin of the face, the teeth and the mucosa of the nose and mouth through its three divisions, and its mandibular division also supplies the muscles of mastication. The facial nerve supplies the muscles of facial expression, the glossopharyngeal and vagus nerves the pharynx and larynx, and the hypoglossal nerve the muscles of the tongue.

Below the skull, the cervical spinal nerves supply the skin and muscles of the neck, and the roots of the brachial plexus pass towards the upper limb.

What the 3D model shows

The nerves view has 200 parts: the brain, brainstem and cerebellum, the spinal cord segments C1–C8 and T1, and the cranial nerves with their branches. The ophthalmic nerve is shown with the frontal, supra-orbital, supratrochlear, lacrimal, nasociliary, ethmoidal and ciliary nerves and the ciliary ganglion; the mandibular nerve with its buccal, lingual, inferior alveolar, mental and mylohyoid branches; the facial nerve with the chorda tympani. The roots of the brachial plexus are included. The nerves and muscles view adds the facial, masticatory, extraocular, tongue, palate, pharyngeal and suboccipital muscles with the bones of the head and neck.

How to study the nerves of the head

In the nerves view, isolate the trigeminal nerve and follow its three divisions: the ophthalmic towards the orbit and forehead, the maxillary towards the upper jaw, and the mandibular towards the lower jaw. Find where the chorda tympani joins the lingual nerve and follow the inferior alveolar nerve to the mental nerve. Then switch to the nerves and muscles view and match the oculomotor, trochlear and abducens nerves with the eye muscles they supply. Finally, name each cranial nerve from its point of attachment to the central nervous system without looking at the labels.