Cranial nerves

Cranial nerves
Cranial nerves
	Left View of the human brain from below, showing origins of cranial nerves. ; Right Juxtaposed skull base with foramina through which many nerves exit the skull.
	Cranial nerves as they pass through the skull base to the brain
Details
Identifiers
Latin	nervus cranialis ; (pl: nervi craniales)
MeSH	D003391
TA98	A14.2.01.001; A14.2.00.038
TA2	6142, 6178
FMA	5865
	Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy

Cranial nerves are the nerves that emerge directly from the brain (including the brainstem), of which there are conventionally considered twelve pairs. Cranial nerves relay information between the brain and parts of the body, primarily to and from regions of the head and neck, including the special senses of vision, taste, smell, and hearing.^[1]

The cranial nerves emerge from the central nervous system above the level of the first vertebra of the vertebral column.^[2] Each cranial nerve is paired and is present on both sides. There are conventionally twelve pairs of cranial nerves, which are described with Roman numerals I–XII. Some considered there to be thirteen pairs of cranial nerves, including cranial nerve zero. The numbering of the cranial nerves is based on the order in which they emerge from the brain and brainstem, from front to back.^[2]

The terminal nerves (0), olfactory nerves (I) and optic nerves (II) emerge from the cerebrum, and the remaining ten pairs arise from the brainstem, which is the lower part of the brain.^[3]

The cranial nerves are considered components of the peripheral nervous system (PNS),^[3] although on a structural level the olfactory (I), optic (II), and trigeminal (V) nerves are more accurately considered part of the central nervous system (CNS).^[4]

The cranial nerves are in contrast to spinal nerves, which emerge from segments of the spinal cord.^[3]

^ Standring, Susan; Borley, Neil R. (2008). "Overview of cranial nerves and cranial nerve nuclei". Gray's anatomy: the anatomical basis of clinical practice (40th ed.). [Edinburgh]: Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier. ISBN 978-0-443-06684-9.
^ ^a ^b Kandel, Eric R. (2013). Principles of neural science (5 ed.). Appleton and Lange: McGraw Hill. pp. 1019–1036. ISBN 978-0-07-139011-8.
^ ^a ^b ^c Vilensky, Joel; Robertson, Wendy; Suarez-Quian, Carlos (2015). The Clinical Anatomy of the Cranial Nerves: The Nerves of "On Olympus Towering Top". Ames, Iowa: Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1-118-49201-7.
^ Board Review Series – Neuroanatomy, Fourth Edition, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Maryland 2008, p. 177. ISBN 978-0-7817-7245-7.

[Gray's2008-1] Standring, Susan; Borley, Neil R. (2008). "Overview of cranial nerves and cranial nerve nuclei". Gray's anatomy: the anatomical basis of clinical practice (40th ed.). [Edinburgh]: Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier. ISBN 978-0-443-06684-9.

[Kandel-2] Kandel, Eric R. (2013). Principles of neural science (5 ed.). Appleton and Lange: McGraw Hill. pp. 1019–1036. ISBN 978-0-07-139011-8.

[Vilensky-3] Vilensky, Joel; Robertson, Wendy; Suarez-Quian, Carlos (2015). The Clinical Anatomy of the Cranial Nerves: The Nerves of "On Olympus Towering Top". Ames, Iowa: Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1-118-49201-7.

[4] Board Review Series – Neuroanatomy, Fourth Edition, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Maryland 2008, p. 177. ISBN 978-0-7817-7245-7.

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Cranial nerves
Left View of the human brain from below, showing origins of cranial nerves. Right Juxtaposed skull base with foramina through which many nerves exit the skull.
Cranial nerves as they pass through the skull base to the brain
Details
Identifiers
Latin	nervus cranialis (pl: nervi craniales)
MeSH	D003391
TA98	A14.2.01.001 A14.2.00.038
TA2	6142, 6178
FMA	5865
Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy [edit on Wikidata]

Cranial nerves
CN 0 – Terminal CN I – Olfactory CN II – Optic CN III – Oculomotor CN IV – Trochlear CN V – Trigeminal CN VI – Abducens CN VII – Facial CN VIII – Vestibulocochlear CN IX – Glossopharyngeal CN X – Vagus CN XI – Accessory CN XII – Hypoglossal
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