(7) The third pouch sinus then courses superiorly through the thyrohyoid membrane cranial to the
superior laryngeal nerve, posterior to the carotid vessels, and deep to the sternocleidomastoid muscle.
Central localization of motor components in the internal branch of the
superior laryngeal nerve: a horseradish peroxidase study in the rat.
The
superior laryngeal nerve arises from the vagus nerve.
Cernea et al., "External branch of the
superior laryngeal nerve monitoring during thyroid and parathyroid surgery: international Neural Monitoring Study Group standards guideline statement," Laryngoscope, vol.
In our study, two patients had features of injury to the external branch of
superior laryngeal nerve. They had a lowered voice tone, vocal fatigue and difficulty in singing note intonation.
Schiel, "Functional anatomy of the recurrent and
superior laryngeal nerve," Langenbecks Archives of Surgery, vol.
Patients with postoperative vocal cord paralysis or evidence of external branch of
superior laryngeal nerve injury were also excluded from the study.
However, to date we have not been able to visualise the
superior laryngeal nerve, an experience also reported by other investigators (2,3).
The use of a nerve stimulator did not aid in anatomical dissection of the RLN and was useful in identifying only
superior laryngeal nerve. Discontinuous nerve monitoring by stimulation during total thyroidectomy confers no obvious benefit for the experienced surgeon in nerve identification, functional testing or injury prevention.
The
superior laryngeal nerve is possibly the most frequently injured nerve.
Preserving the
superior laryngeal nerve in patients undergoing total glossectomy is the most important factor in preventing aspiration.
The superior paraganglia, located in the false vocal cord, are associated with the
superior laryngeal nerve and artery.
