A study on the branching pattern of the facial nerve of children.

The aim of this study was to elucidate the branching patterns of the facial nerve inside the parotid gland. The relations between the branchings of the facial nerve were investigated on 27 children's faces. The trunk of the facial nerve had a length of about 0.9 cm (0.6-1.2 cm). According to the branching patterns of the facial nerve and to the communication of branches, they were grouped into 5 types. The straight branching was seen in 14 (52%) out of 27 cases (Type I). Two (7%) out of 27 cases had a loop involving the zygomatic branch (Type II). There were anastomoses between buccal and zygomatic branches in 2 (7%) of cases (Type III). There were multiple anastomoses among branches in 8 (30%) of the cases (Type IV). Only one (4%) out of 27 cases had two trunks, one thin and one thick (Type V). 13 of the cases were bilaterally studied. Seven out of 13 (53%) were bilaterally same type and 6 out of 13 (47%) were bilaterally different type. The branching groups of Type I and IV were seen more in children aged 0-2 and 4-5 compared to the other types, respectively. As the child gets older, the incidence frequency of anastomoses in the facial nerve increases with age.