The Hypoglossal Nerve (CN XII) | 合法醫療器材資訊網

Thehypoglossalnervearisesfromthehypoglossalnucleusinthemedullaoblongataofthebrainstem.Itthenpasseslaterallyacrosstheposteriorcranialfossa, ...

The hypoglossal nerve is the twelfth paired cranial nerve.

Its name is derived from ancient Greek, hypo meaning under, and glossal meaning tongue. The nerve has a purely somatic motor function, innervating all the extrinsic and intrinsic muscles of the tongue (except the palatoglossus, innervated by vagus nerve).

In this article, we shall look at the anatomy of the hypoglossal nerve - its anatomical course, motor functions and clinical correlations.

The hypoglossal nerve arises from the hypoglossal nucleus in the medulla oblongata of the brainstem. It then passes laterally across the posterior cranial fossa, within the subarachnoid space. The nerve exits the cranium via the hypoglossal canal of the occipital bone.

Now extracranial, the nerve receives a branch of the cervical plexus that conducts fibres from C1/C2 spi...