Department of Neurosurgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, 70112, USA.
Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Anat Sci Int. 2023 Sep;98(4):604-610. doi: 10.1007/s12565-023-00708-8. Epub 2023 Mar 7.
Anatomical variations between the facial nerve and adjacent arteries are rare. However, knowledge of such anatomical variations is important to the surgeon who operates on or near the facial nerve. Herein, we report an unusual finding between the extracranial part of the facial nerve and a nearby artery. During routine dissection of the right facial nerve trunk, the posterior auricular artery was found to pierce the nerve effectively forming a nerve loop. The nerve was pierced by the artery soon after its exit from the stylomastoid foramen. This case is detailed and a review on this topic presented, specifically identifying previously reported studies describing this or similar variations, and the relationship between the posterior auricular artery and facial nerve trunk in general. Piercing of the facial nerve trunk by the posterior auricular artery appears to be rare. However, such a relationship should be known by the clinician who treats patients with pathologies of the facial nerve trunk. To our knowledge, this is the first report of this variation in an adult. Due to such rarity, this case is of archival value for those who might describe it or similar cases in the future.
面神经与相邻动脉之间的解剖变异很少见。然而，对面神经附近或附近进行手术的外科医生来说，了解这种解剖变异是很重要的。在此，我们报告了面神经颅外段与附近动脉之间的一种不寻常发现。在对右侧面神经干进行常规解剖时，发现耳后动脉穿过神经，有效地形成了一个神经环。动脉在离开茎乳孔后不久就穿过了神经。本病例详细介绍，并对该主题进行了回顾，特别确定了以前报道的描述这种或类似变异的研究，以及耳后动脉与面神经干之间的一般关系。耳后动脉穿过面神经干似乎很少见。然而，治疗面神经干病变的临床医生应该了解这种关系。据我们所知，这是首例在成人中出现这种变异的报道。由于这种罕见性，对于那些将来可能描述这种或类似病例的人来说，这个病例具有档案价值。
