Internal carotid plexus

The internal carotid plexus is a nerve plexus situated upon the lateral side of the internal carotid artery. It is composed of post-ganglionic sympathetic fibres which have synapsed at (i.e. have their nerve cell bodies at) the superior cervical ganglion. The plexus gives rise to the deep petrosal nerve.[1]

Internal carotid plexus
Sympathetic connections of the ciliary and superior cervical ganglia. (Carotid plexus visible center top.) Note that the label "Sympathetic Efferent Fibres" above the nerves arising in the midbrain is an error. This label should read "Parasympathetic Efferent Fibres" as the sphincter pupillæ and ciliary muscle are innervated only by parasympathetic fibres.
Diagram of the cervical sympathetic. (Carotid plexus visible center top.)
Details
Identifiers
LatinPlexus caroticus internus
TA98A14.3.03.004
TA26645
FMA67533
Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy
Scheme showing sympathetic and parasympathetic innervation of the pupil and sites of lesion in a Horner's syndrome.

Anatomy

Postganglionic sympathetic fibres ascend from the superior cervical ganglion, along the walls of the internal carotid artery, to enter the internal carotid plexus. These fibres are then distributed to deep structures, including the superior tarsal muscle and pupillary dilator muscle.[2] It includes fibres destined for the pupillary dilator muscle as part of a neural circuit regulating pupillary dilatation component of the pupillary reflex.[3] Some fibres of the plexus converge to form the deep petrosal nerve.[4]

The internal carotid plexus communicates with the trigeminal ganglion, the abducent nerve, and the pterygopalatine ganglion (also named sphenopalatine); it distributes filaments to the wall of the internal carotid artery, and also communicates with the tympanic branch of the glossopharyngeal nerve.

The plexus there occasionally presents a small gangliform swelling - the carotid ganglion - on the under surface of the artery.

Additional images
  • Nerves of the orbit, and the ciliary ganglion. Side view.
    Nerves of the orbit, and the ciliary ganglion. Side view.
  • Pathways in the Ciliary Ganglion.
    Pathways in the Ciliary Ganglion.

References

Public domain This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 977 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

Notes
  1. Goosmann, Madeline M.; Dalvin, Mark (2023), "Anatomy, Head and Neck, Deep Petrosal Nerve", StatPearls, Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, PMID 30521238, retrieved 2023-07-31
  2. Hal Blumenfeld, "Neuroanatomy through Clinical Cases", Sinauer Associates, 2002, p543
  3. Patestas, Maria A.; Gartner, Leslie P. (2016). A Textbook of Neuroanatomy (2nd ed.). Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell. p. 367. ISBN 978-1-118-67746-9.
  4. Richard L. Drake, Wayne Vogel & Adam W M Mitchell, "Gray's Anatomy for Students", Elsevier inc., 2005


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