The transverse cervical nerve (superficial cervical or cutaneous cervical) arises from the second and third

spinal nerves A spinal nerve is a mixed nerve, which carries motor, sensory, and autonomic signals between the spinal cord and the body. In the human body there are 31 pairs of spinal nerves, one on each side of the vertebral column. These are grouped into the ...

, turns around the posterior border of the

sternocleidomastoideus The sternocleidomastoid muscle is one of the largest and most superficial cervical muscles. The primary actions of the muscle are rotation of the head to the opposite side and flexion of the neck. The sternocleidomastoid is innervated by the access ...

about its middle, and, passing obliquely forward beneath the

external jugular vein The external jugular vein receives the greater part of the blood from the exterior of the cranium and the deep parts of the face, being formed by the junction of the posterior division of the retromandibular vein with the posterior auricular vein ...

to the anterior border of the muscle, it perforates the

deep cervical fascia The deep cervical fascia (or fascia colli in older texts) lies under cover of the platysma, and invests the muscles of the neck; it also forms sheaths for the carotid vessels, and for the structures situated in front of the vertebral column. Its a ...

, and divides beneath the

Platysma The platysma muscle is a superficial muscle of the human neck that overlaps the sternocleidomastoid. It covers the anterior surface of the neck superficially. When it contracts, it produces a slight wrinkling of the neck, and a "bowstring" effect ...

into ascending and descending branches, which are distributed to the antero-lateral parts of the

neck The neck is the part of the body on many vertebrates that connects the head with the torso. The neck supports the weight of the head and protects the nerves that carry sensory and motor information from the brain down to the rest of the body. In ...

. It provides cutaneous innervation to this area. During dissection, the sternocleidomastoid (SCM) is the landmark. The transverse cervical nerves will pass horizontally directly over the SCM from Erb's point.

Additional images

File:Gray784.png, Dermatome distribution of the trigeminal nerve File:Gray1210.png, Side of neck, showing chief surface markings.

References

External links

* * Nerves of the head and neck {{neuroanatomy-stub