Microsurgical anatomy of the glossopharyngeal nerve

The glossopharyngeal nerve is a complicated and mixed nerve including sensory, motor, parasympathetic, and visceral fibers. It mediates taste, salivation, and swallowing. The low cranial nerves, including IXth, Xth, and XIth, are closely related, sharing some nuclei in the brainstem. The glossopharyngeal nerve arises from the spinal trigeminal nucleus and tract, solitary tract and nucleus, nucleus ambiguous, and inferior salivatory nucleus in the brainstem. There are communicating branches forming a neural anastomotic network between low cranial nerves. Comprehensive knowledge of the anatomy of the glossopharyngeal nerve is crucial for performing surgical procedures without significant complications. This review describes the microsurgical anatomy of the glossopharyngeal nerve and illustrates some pictures involving the glossopharyngeal nerve and its connective and neurovascular structures.