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Updated: Jul 2, 2025

In Vivo Evaluation of the Mechanical and Viscoelastic Properties of the Rat Tongue
Published on: July 6, 2017
Microsurgical anatomy of the glossopharyngeal nerve
1Department of Neurosurgery, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
Abstract:
The glossopharyngeal nerve is a complicated and mixed nerve including sensory, motor, parasympathetic, and visceral fibers. It mediates taste, salivation, and swallowing. The low cranial nerves, including IXth, Xth, and XIth, are closely related, sharing some nuclei in the brainstem. The glossopharyngeal nerve arises from the spinal trigeminal nucleus and tract, solitary tract and nucleus, nucleus ambiguous, and inferior salivatory nucleus in the brainstem. There are communicating branches forming a neural anastomotic network between low cranial nerves. Comprehensive knowledge of the anatomy of the glossopharyngeal nerve is crucial for performing surgical procedures without significant complications. This review describes the microsurgical anatomy of the glossopharyngeal nerve and illustrates some pictures involving the glossopharyngeal nerve and its connective and neurovascular structures.
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