| Nerve: Tympanic nerve | |
|---|---|
| Plan of upper portions of glossopharyngeal, vagus, and accessory nerves. (Tympanic nerve visible in upper right.) | |
| Latin | nervus tympanicus |
| Gray's | subject #204 910 |
| To | tympanic plexus |
The tympanic nerve (nerve of Jacobson) is a branch of the glossopharyngeal nerve found near the ear.
Contents |
It arises from the petrous ganglion, and ascends to the tympanic cavity through a small canal, the fossula petrosa/tympanic canaliculus, on the under surface of the petrous portion of the temporal bone on the ridge which separates the carotid canal from the jugular fossa.
In the tympanic cavity it divides into branches which form the tympanic plexus and are contained in grooves upon the surface of the promontory.
Jacobson's nerve contains both sensory and secretory fibers.
The postganglionic parasympathetic fibers are then distributed via the auriculotemporal nerve (branch of the trigeminal nerve) to the parotid gland.
This nerve may be involved by paraganglioma, in this location referred to as glomus jugulare or glomus tympanicum tumours.
This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained within it may be outdated.
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