The cervical ganglia are

paravertebral ganglia The sympathetic ganglia, or paravertebral ganglia, are autonomic ganglia of the sympathetic nervous system. Ganglia are 20,000 to 30,000 Afferent nerve fiber, afferent and Efferent nerve fiber, efferent nerve cell bodies that run along on either s ...

of the

sympathetic nervous system The sympathetic nervous system (SNS or SANS, sympathetic autonomic nervous system, to differentiate it from the somatic nervous system) is one of the three divisions of the autonomic nervous system, the others being the parasympathetic nervous sy ...

Preganglionic In the autonomic nervous system, nerve fibers from the central nervous system to the autonomic ganglion, ganglion are known as preganglionic nerve fibers. All preganglionic fibers, whether they are in the sympathetic nervous system, sympathetic d ...

nerves from the thoracic spinal cord enter into the cervical ganglions and synapse with its

postganglionic In the autonomic nervous system, nerve fibers from the ganglion to the wikt:effector, effector organ are called postganglionic nerve fibers. Neurotransmitters The neurotransmitters of postganglionic fibers differ: * In the parasympathetic div ...

fibers or nerves. The cervical ganglion has three

: *

superior cervical ganglion The superior cervical ganglion (SCG) is the upper-most and largest of the cervical sympathetic ganglia of the sympathetic trunk. It probably formed by the union of four sympathetic ganglia of the cervical spinal nerves C1–C4. It is the only ...

(largest) – adjacent to C2 & C3; postganglionic axon projects to target: (heart, head, neck) via "hitchhiking" on the carotid arteries * middle cervical ganglion (smallest) – adjacent to C6; target: heart, neck *

inferior cervical ganglion The inferior cervical ganglion is one of the three cervical sympathetic ganglia (i.e. of the cervical portion of the sympathetic trunk). It is situated between the base of the transverse process of the last cervical vertebra and the neck of the ...

. The inferior ganglion may be fused with the first thoracic ganglion to form a single structure, the stellate ganglion. – adjacent to C7; target: heart, lower neck, arm, posterior cranial arteries Nerves emerging from cervical sympathetic ganglia contribute to the cardiac plexus, among other things. Unlike all other ganglia, the medial branches of the cervical ganglia are 95% postganglionic axons.

Additional images

File:Slide1EBAB.JPG, Muscles, arteries and nerves of neck. Newborn dissection.

References

External links

* – "The Sympathetic Trunk and Cervical Ganglia" * * http://www.instantanatomy.net/headneck/nerves/autonomic/cervicalgangliaconnections.html * http://www.instantanatomy.net/headneck/nerves/autonomic/cervicalganglianeck.html {{Autonomic Autonomic ganglia