Greater occipital nerve
| Greater occipital nerve | |
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Posterior primary divisions of the upper three cervical nerves. (Great occipital nerve labeled at center top.)
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| Details | |
| Latin | Nervus occipitalis major |
| From | C2 |
| Innervates | semispinalis capitis, scalp |
| Identifiers | |
| Dorlands /Elsevier |
n_05/12566321 |
| TA | Lua error in Module:Wikidata at line 744: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). |
| TH | {{#property:P1694}} |
| TE | {{#property:P1693}} |
| FMA | {{#property:P1402}} |
| Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy
[[[d:Lua error in Module:Wikidata at line 863: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).|edit on Wikidata]]]
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The greater occipital nerve is a spinal nerve, specifically the medial branch of the dorsal primary ramus of cervical spinal nerve 2. This nerve arises from between the first and second cervical vertebrae, along with the lesser occipital nerve. It ascends after emerging from below the suboccipital triangle beneath the obliquus capitis inferior muscle. It then passes through the trapezius muscle and ascends to innervate the skin along the posterior part of the scalp to the vertex. It innervates the scalp at the top of the head, over the ear and over the parotid glands.
Contents
Clinical relevance
Disorder of this nerve is one of the causes of cervicogenic headaches, referred to as occipital neuralgias. A common site, and usually misdiagnosed area of entrapment for the greater occipital nerve is at the obliquus capitis inferior muscle.[1]
Occipital pain management
Some innovations in pain management technology utilize neurostimulation to target tension headaches that originate from the occipital nerve. Most people experiencing tension headaches will notice increasing intensity with time and pain originating in the back of the head (occipital) moving to the front of the head (supraorbital), and by targeting specific parts of the brain in that pathway, migraine relief can be achieved.[2]
Notes
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Migraine Treatment Technology Explained http://www.reedmigraine.com/treat/conditions[unreliable source?]
Additional images
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Dermatome distribution of the trigeminal nerve
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The nerves of the scalp, face, and side of neck.
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Lateral head anatomy detail
