Suboccipital nerve

Nerve: Suboccipital nerve

Median sagittal section through the occipital bone and first three cervical vertebrae. (Suboccipital nerve labeled at center right.)
Latin	nervus suboccipitalis
Gray's	subject #210 925

The first cervical nerve, the suboccipital nerve exits the spinal cord between the skull and the first cervical vertebra, the atlas.

It supplies muscles around the suboccipital triangle including the rectus capitis posterior major, obliquus capitis superior, and obliquus capitis inferior. The suboccipital nerve also innervates rectus capitis posterior minor.

See also

Vertebral artery

Additional images

External links

Suboccipital+nerve at eMedicine Dictionary

Nerves: spinal nerves (TA A14.2, GA 9.916)

C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7, C8

anterior (Cervical plexus, Brachial plexus) – posterior (Posterior branches of cervical nerves, Suboccipital – C1, Greater occipital – C2, Third occipital – C3)

T1, T2, T3, T4, T5, T6, T7, T8, T9, T10, T11, T12

anterior (Intercostal, Intercostobrachial – T2, Thoraco-abdominal nerves – T7–T11, Subcostal – T12) – posterior (Posterior branches of thoracic nerves)

L1, L2, L3, L4, L5

anterior (Lumbar plexus, Lumbosacral trunk) · posterior (Posterior branches of the lumbar nerves, Superior cluneal L1–L3)

S1, S2, S3, S4, S5

anterior (Sacral plexus) · posterior (Posterior branches of sacral nerves, Medial cluneal nerves)

anterior (Coccygeal plexus) · posterior (Posterior branch of coccygeal nerve)

M: PNS

anat(h/r/t/c/b/l/s/a)/phys(r)/devp/prot/nttr/nttm/ntrp

noco/auto/cong/tumr, sysi/epon, injr

proc, drug(N1B)