Intro | Abducens | Facial | Glossopharyngeal | Hypoglossal | Oculomotor | Optic | Spinal Accessory | Statoacoustic | Trigeminal | Trochlear | Vagus
Part 1: Image-Mapped Tutorial
Part 2: Matching Self-Test
Part 3: Multiple-Choice Self-Test
Cranial Nerve 10 - Vagus (X)
The vagus nerve conveys sensory information from the neck, thorax or chest, and the abdomen. The vagus nerve also controls the motor function of muscles underlying swallowing and control of the larynx. In addition, parasympathetic control of the heart and other viscera is controlled by motor components of this cranial nerve.
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The motor portion of the mixed vagus nerve originates in the medulla and passes through the jugular foramen to terminate on muscles (or air passages) of the lungs, esophagus, heart, stomach, small intestine, majority of the large intestine, and gallbladder (Parent, 1996). The vagus nerve supplies parasympathetic innervation to the involuntary smooth muscles and glands of the gastrointestinal tract, with the net effect of supporting digestive processes via muscle contraction and stimulation of glandular secretions. The sensory portion of vagus nerve conveys proprioception information from the structures innervated by its motor fibers, and traverses the same path on its way back to the medulla and pons.
| Reference |
Parent, A. (1996). Carpenter's human neuroanatomy (9th ed.). London: Williams & Wilkins.