The brain is the center of all neurological processing activity and can be affected by more than 600 known neurological disorders. Causes of neurological disorders include genetics, injury and environment with symptoms ranging in severity from...
Located beneath the large muscles on either side of the neck, or the sternocleidomastoids, the carotid sheath, part of the cervical band of tissue, or fascia, encloses the carotid artery, the internal jugular vein and the vagus nerve. World...
There are two ways that nerves exit the central nervous system and become part of the peripheral nervous system--through openings in the vertebrae of the spine or through openings in the skull, or cranium. Twelve cranial nerves conduct signals to...
Problems with one of the largest nerves in your head, the trigeminal nerve, can result in a painful condition known as trigeminal neuralgia. This chronic disorder, which most often appears in women over age 50, produces excruciating facial pain....
The two cavernous sinuses are venous drainage areas on either side of the pituitary gland, at the base of the skull. Several cranial nerves and the internal carotid artery pass through the sinus. Thrombosis, or clotting, in the sinus can be caused...
Trigeminal neuralgia, also called tic douloureux, results in severe pain. The disorder affects one of the cranial nerves, the trigeminal nerve, which begins at the base of the brain. The patient has an episode of pain that occurs in the face,...
The 12 cranial nerves control the muscles of the face, receive sensory input from the face, control heart rate and respiration, and transmit the special senses--vision, smell and hearing--to the brain. According to "Harrison's Principles of...
