Anterior ethmoidal nerve

Anterior ethmoidal nerve
The ophthalmic artery and its branches. (Nerve not pictured, but location is similar to artery.)
Details
FromNasociliary nerve
InnervatesMeninges, nasal cavity, skin of nose
Identifiers
Latinnervus ethmoidalis anterior
TA98A14.2.01.030
TA26208
FMA52675
Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy

The anterior ethmoidal nerve is a nerve of the head.[1] It is a sensory branch of the nasociliary nerve (itself a branch of the ophthalmic nerve (CN V1)).[2] It arises in the orbit, and enters first the cranial cavity and then the nasal cavity.[3] It provides sensory innervation to part of the meninges, nasal cavity, and part of the skin of the nose.[4] The nerve is relevant in conditions involving nasal sensation and in surgical procedures of the skull base and nasal cavity.[5]

Structure

Origin

The anterior ethmoidal nerve is a terminal branch of the nasociliary nerve, a branch of the ophthalmic nerve (CN V1), itself a branch of the trigeminal nerve (CN V).[6] It branches near the medial wall of the orbit.

Course

It passes through the anterior ethmoidal canal alongside the anterior ethmoidal artery[1]: 780  and vein[1]: 566  to emerge in anterior cranial fossa through the anterior ethmoidal foramen[1]: 1464.e13  (at the junction of the cribiform plate of ethmoid bone and orbital part of frontal bone[1]: 566 ).

Within the cranial cavity, it passes anterior-ward (external to the dura mater) along a groove upon the superior surface of the cribriform plate. It descends through an aperture situated lateral to the crista galli to reach the nasal cavity.[1]: 1464.e13 

In the nasal cavity, it passes along a groove upon the internal aspect of the nasal bone, and issuing the medial and lateral internal nasal branches.[1]: 1464.e13 

It is continued as the external nasal nerve beyond the inferior margin of the nasal bone.[1]: 1464.e13 

Distribution

Within the anterior cranial fossa, it gives sensory fibers to the meninges to provide sensory innervation to part of the meninges.[7]

Its medial internal nasal branch innervates the superior and anterior portions of the nasal septum.[1]: 1464.e13 

Its lateral internal nasal branch innervates the anterior portion of the lateral nasal wall.[1]: 1464.e13 

It gives off branches to the roof of the nasal cavity, and bifurcates into a lateral internal nasal branch and medial internal nasal branch. It sends sensory fibers to the anterior ethmoid air cells and the middle ethmoidal air cells.[4]

Its terminal branch - the external nasal nerve - innervates skin of the nose between the nasal bones superiorly and the tip of the nose inferiorly, except the alar portion surrounding the external nares.[1]: 1464.e13 

Function

It is involved in the diving reflex.[8]

Disease

Chronic pain in this region is known as Anterior Ethmoidal Nerve Syndrome, or AENS.[9] One cause of this is compression of the surrounding nerve which causes sphenopalatine ganglion neuralgia, with similar clinical findings of a cluster headache, outside of further nasal symptoms.[10] Potential treatments include the injection of anesthetics or, in more serious cases, a partial turbinectomy. The syndrome was featured in season 3, episode 5 of Grey's Anatomy.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Standring, Susan (2020). Gray's Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice (42th ed.). New York. ISBN 978-0-7020-7707-4. OCLC 1201341621.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^ Monkhouse, Stanley (2006). Cranial nerves: functional anatomy. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-61537-2.
  3. ^ Rhoton, Albert L. (2002-10-01). "The Anterior and Middle Cranial Base". Neurosurgery. 51 (suppl_4): S1–273-S1-302. doi:10.1097/00006123-200210001-00007. ISSN 0148-396X.
  4. ^ a b Sobiesk, John L.; Munakomi, Sunil (2026), "Anatomy, Head and Neck, Nasal Cavity", StatPearls, Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, PMID 31334952, retrieved 2026-03-10
  5. ^ Moon, Hyoung‐Jin; Kim, Hyun‐Ung; Lee, Jeung‐Gweon; Chung, In Hyuk; Yoon, Joo‐Heon (May 2001). "Surgical Anatomy of the Anterior Ethmoidal Canal in Ethmoid Roof". The Laryngoscope. 111 (5): 900–904. doi:10.1097/00005537-200105000-00027. ISSN 0023-852X.
  6. ^ Lucier, Gregory E.; Egizii, Rita (1986). "Central projections of the ethmoidal nerve of the cat as determined by the horseradish peroxidase tracer technique". Journal of Comparative Neurology. 247 (1): 123–132. doi:10.1002/cne.902470108. ISSN 1096-9861. PMID 3711374. S2CID 23040741.
  7. ^ Shimizu, Toshihiko; Suzuki, Norihiro (2010). "3 - Biological sciences related to headache". Handbook of Clinical Neurology. Vol. 97. Elsevier. pp. 35–45. doi:10.1016/S0072-9752(10)97003-6. ISBN 978-0-444-52139-2. ISSN 0072-9752. PMID 20816409.
  8. ^ Rybka, E. J.; McCulloch, P. F. (23 February 2006). "The anterior ethmoidal nerve is necessary for the initiation of the nasopharyngeal response in the rat". Brain Research. 1075 (1): 122–132. doi:10.1016/j.brainres.2005.12.112. ISSN 0006-8993. PMID 16466647. S2CID 37900942.
  9. ^ Burnham, Howard H. (1 November 1949). "THE ANTERIOR ETHMOIDAL NERVE SYNDROME<subtitle>Referred Pain and Headache from the Lateral Nasal Wall</subtitle>". Archives of Otolaryngology. p. 640. doi:10.1001/archotol.1949.00700010654011.
  10. ^ He, Wei; Zhang, Yixin; Long, Ting; Pan, Qi; Zhang, Shanshan; Zhou, Jiying (2019). "Sphenopalatine Neuralgia: An Independent Neuralgia Entity. Pooled Analysis of a Case Series and Literature Review". Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain. pp. 358–370. doi:10.1111/head.13469. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.