What does the greater occipital nerve do?

What does the greater occipital nerve do?

The greater occipital nerve arises from between the first and second cervical vertebrae, along with the lesser occipital nerve. It supplies sensation to the skin along the back of the scalp to the top of the head.

What is a Occipitalis?

Medical Definition of occipitalis : the posterior belly of the occipitofrontalis that arises from the lateral two-thirds of the superior nuchal lines and from the mastoid part of the temporal bone, inserts into the galea aponeurotica, and acts to move the scalp.

What does the minor occipital nerve do?

The lesser occipital nerve, also known as the small occipital nerve, is a cutaneous branch of the cervical plexus that innervates the skin of the neck and scalp posterior and superior to the auricle.

What does the occipital nerve affect?

The occipital nerves are a group of nerves that arise from the C2 and C3 spinal nerves. [1][2] They innervate the posterior scalp up as far as the vertex and other structures as well, such as the ear.

What muscle does the greater occipital nerve innervate?

semispinalis capitis

What does occipital nerve pain feel like?

Symptoms of occipital neuralgia include continuous aching, burning and throbbing, with intermittent shocking or shooting pain that generally starts at the base of the head and goes to the scalp on one or both sides of the head. Patients often have pain behind the eye of the affected side of the head.

What causes neuralgia?

The pain can be caused by a blood vessel pressing down on the nerve where it meets with the brainstem. It can also be caused by multiple sclerosis, injury to the nerve, or other causes. Trigeminal neuralgia causes severe, recurrent pain in the face, usually on one side.

What are the symptoms of neuralgia?

In general, neuralgia causes intense and distinct symptoms, including:

• sudden episodes of extreme shooting or stabbing pain that follows the path of a damaged or irritated nerve.
• persistent aching or burning pain.
• tingling or numbness.
• muscle weakness.
• loss of muscle mass, or atrophy.
• involuntary muscle twitching or cramping.

Does occipital nerve affect vision?

This pain is typically one-sided, although it can be on both sides if both occipital nerves have been affected. Additionally, the pain may radiate forward toward the eye, as it follows the path of the occipital nerve(s). Individuals may notice blurred vision as the pain radiates near or behind the eye.

What does the occipital nerve innervate?

The greater occipital nerve is a cutaneous nerve, the thickest in the body, that innervates the skin from the upper neck, over the occiput, up to the vertex of the scalp 1-3.

Is there an eponym for the greater occipital nerve?

The use of the eponym ‘Arnold’ for the greater occipital nerve is now felt to be erroneous, based upon a historical misattribution. Therefore, by extension, the use of the term Arnold neuralgia, for occipital neuralgia, is also suspect and should be discarded.

Where does the pain of occipital neuralgia originate?

DOI: 10.1111/j.1533-2500.2009.00355.x Abstract Occipital neuralgia is defined as a paroxysmal shooting or stabbing pain in the dermatomes of the nervus occipitalis major and/or nervus occipitalis minor. The pain originates in the suboccipital region and radiates over the vertex.

Where does the semispinalis capitis give off muscular branches?

It gives off muscular branches to the Semispinalis capitis, and occasionally a twig to the back of the auricula. This definition incorporates text from a public domain edition of Gray’s Anatomy (20th U.S. edition of Gray’s Anatomy of the Human Body, published in 1918 – from http://www.bartleby.com/107/).