The submandibular ganglion (or submaxillary ganglion in older texts) is part of the human

autonomic nervous system The autonomic nervous system (ANS), sometimes called the visceral nervous system and formerly the vegetative nervous system, is a division of the nervous system that operates viscera, internal organs, smooth muscle and glands. The autonomic nervo ...

. It is one of four

parasympathetic ganglia Parasympathetic ganglia are the autonomic ganglia of the parasympathetic nervous system. Most are small terminal ganglia or intramural ganglia, so named because they lie near or within (respectively) the organs they innervate. The exceptions are t ...

of the head and neck. (The others are the

otic ganglion The otic ganglion is a small parasympathetic ganglion located immediately below the foramen ovale in the infratemporal fossa and on the medial surface of the mandibular nerve. It is functionally associated with the glossopharyngeal nerve and i ...

pterygopalatine ganglion The pterygopalatine ganglion (aka Meckel's ganglion, nasal ganglion, or sphenopalatine ganglion) is a parasympathetic ganglion in the pterygopalatine fossa. It is one of four parasympathetic ganglia of the head and neck, (the others being the s ...

, and

ciliary ganglion The ciliary ganglion is a parasympathetic ganglion located just behind the eye in the posterior orbit. It is 1–2 mm in diameter and in humans contains approximately 2,500 neurons. The ganglion contains postganglionic parasympathetic neurons. T ...

Location and relations

The submandibular ganglion is small and

fusiform Fusiform (from Latin ''fusus'' ‘spindle’) means having a spindle (textiles), spindle-like shape that is wide in the middle and tapers at both ends. It is similar to the lemon (geometry), lemon-shape, but often implies a focal broadening of a ...

in shape. It is situated above the deep portion of the

submandibular gland The paired submandibular glands (historically known as submaxillary glands) are major salivary glands located beneath the floor of the mouth. In adult humans, they each weigh about 15 grams and contribute some 60–67% of unstimulated saliva sec ...

, on the

hyoglossus muscle The hyoglossus is a thin and quadrilateral extrinsic muscle of the tongue. It originates from the hyoid bone; it inserts onto the side of the tongue. It is innervated by the hypoglossal nerve (cranial nerve XII). It acts to depress and retract th ...

, near the posterior border of the

mylohyoid muscle The mylohyoid muscle or diaphragma oris is a paired muscle of the neck. It runs from the Human mandible, mandible to the hyoid bone, forming the floor of the oral cavity of the human mouth, mouth. It is named after its two attachments near the mo ...

. The ganglion 'hangs' by two nerve filaments from the lower border of the

lingual nerve The lingual nerve carries sensory innervation from the anterior two-thirds of the tongue. It contains fibres from both the mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve (CN V) and from the facial nerve (CN VII). The fibres from the trigeminal nerve ...

(itself a branch of the

mandibular nerve In neuroanatomy, the mandibular nerve (V) is the largest of the three divisions of the trigeminal nerve, the fifth Cranial nerves, cranial nerve (CN V). Unlike the other divisions of the trigeminal nerve (ophthalmic nerve, maxillary nerve) which ...

, CN V₃). It is suspended from the lingual nerve by two filaments, one anterior and one posterior. Through the posterior of these it receives a branch from the

chorda tympani Chorda tympani is a branch of the facial nerve that carries gustatory (taste) sensory innervation from the front of the tongue and parasympathetic ( secretomotor) innervation to the submandibular and sublingual salivary glands. Chorda tymp ...

nerve which runs in the sheath of the lingual nerve.

Fibers

Like other parasympathetic ganglia of the head and neck, the submandibular ganglion is the site of synapse for parasympathetic fibers and carries other types of nerve fiber that do not synapse in the ganglion. In summary, the fibers carried in the ganglion are: * Sympathetic fibers from the

external carotid plexus External may refer to: * Externality, in economics, the cost or benefit that affects a party who did not choose to incur that cost or benefit * Externals, a fictional group of X-Men antagonists See also * *Internal (disambiguation) Internal may ...

, via the

facial nerve The facial nerve, also known as the seventh cranial nerve, cranial nerve VII, or simply CN VII, is a cranial nerve that emerges from the pons of the brainstem, controls the muscles of facial expression, and functions in the conveyance of ta ...

and its branches. These do not synapse in this ganglion. *

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 ...

parasympathetic fibers from the

superior salivatory nucleus The salivatory nuclei are two general visceral efferent fiber, general visceral efferent Nucleus (anatomy), nuclei located in the caudal pons, dorsal and lateral to the facial nucleus. Their neurons give rise to preganglionic nerve fibers, pregan ...

of the

Pons The pons (from Latin , "bridge") is part of the brainstem that in humans and other mammals, lies inferior to the midbrain, superior to the medulla oblongata and anterior to the cerebellum. The pons is also called the pons Varolii ("bridge of ...

, via the

and

, which synapse at this ganglion. *

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 ...

parasympathetic fibers to the

oral mucosa The oral mucosa is the mucous membrane lining the inside of the mouth. It comprises stratified squamous epithelium, termed "oral epithelium", and an underlying connective tissue termed '' lamina propria''. The oral cavity has sometimes been des ...

and the submandibular and

sublingual Sublingual (List of abbreviations used in medical prescriptions, abbreviated SL), from the Latin for "under the tongue", refers to the pharmacological route of administration by which substances diffuse into the blood through Tissue (biology), t ...

salivary glands. They are secretomotor to these glands. Some of the postganglionic fibers reach the sublingual gland after they re-enter the

Additional images

File:Gray782.png, Mandibular division of trifacial nerve, seen from the middle line. File:Gray839.png, Diagram of efferent sympathetic nervous system.

References

External links

* * (, ) * {{Authority control Autonomic ganglia of the head and neck Mandibular nerve Parasympathetic ganglia Otorhinolaryngology Nervous system