Inferior branch of oculomotor nerve
Encyclopedia
The inferior branch of the oculomotor nerve or the inferior division, the larger, divides into three branches.
All these branches enter the muscles on their ocular surfaces, with the exception of the nerve to the inferior oblique, which enters the muscle at its posterior border.
- One passes beneath the optic nerve to the medial rectus.
- Another, to the inferior rectus.
- The third and longest runs forward between the inferior recti and lateralis to the inferior oblique. From the last a short thick branch is given off to the lower part of the ciliary ganglionCiliary ganglionThe ciliary ganglion is a parasympathetic ganglion located in the posterior orbit. It measures 1–2 millimeters in diameter and contains approximately 2,500 neurons. Preganglionic axons from the Edinger-Westphal nucleus travel along the oculomotor nerve and form synapses with these cells...
, and forms its short root.
All these branches enter the muscles on their ocular surfaces, with the exception of the nerve to the inferior oblique, which enters the muscle at its posterior border.