Ansa cervicalis: Encyclopedia - Ansa cervicalis

Ansa cervicalis

The ansa cervicalis is a loop of nerves that are part of the cervical plexus.

The superior root of the ansa cervicalis is a loop between fibers from spinal nerves C1 and C2. These nerve fibers travel in the hypoglossal nerve before leaving to form the superior root. The superior root goes around the occipital artery and then descends in the carotid sheath. It sends a branch off to the superior belly of the omohyoid muscle and is then joined by the inferior root. The inferior root is formed by fibers from spinal nerves C2 and C3. These two roots make up the ansa cervicalis.

Branches from the ansa cervicalis innervate the sternohyoid muscle, sternothyroid muscle, and the inferior belly of the omohyoid muscle.

Ansa cervicalis - Reference

• "Ansa cervicalis." Stedman's Medical Dictionary, 27th ed. (2000). ISBN 0-683-40007-X
• Gray's Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice. (2005). ISBN 0-443-07168-3

Categories: Head and neck | Peripheral nervous system

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Ansa cervicalis", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki