The facial nerve has motor, sensory, and parasympathetic functions. It is responsible for facial expression muscles, taste on the front two thirds of the tongue, and secretomotor functions to glands like lacrimal and salivary. It exits the skull through the internal auditory meatus and stylomastoid foramen, branching to innervate muscles of facial expression and neck as well as parotid and submandibular glands.

1. FACIAL NERVE VII
FUNCTION:
MOTOR – Muscles of facial expression
SENSORY – Taste on anterior two thirds of the tongue
PARASYMPATHETIC – Secromotor submandibular, sublingual, lacrimal, nasal and palatine.
MOTOR ROOT – Facial nerve nucleus to geniculate ganglion in internal acoustic meatus.
PARASYMPATHETIC ROOT – Superior Salivatory Nucleus and Lacrimatory Nucleus to nervus
intermedius to geniculate ganglion
SENSORY ROOT - Nucleus of Solitary Tract from nervus intermedius from geniculate ganglion from
chorda tympani for tongue taste.
BRANCHES:
INTERCRANIAL – INTERNAL AUDITORY MEATUS
GREATER PETROSAL NERVE – Parasympathetic lacrimal gland, mucous glands of
nose, palate and pharynx and sensory taste palate.
STAPEDIUS – Motor to stapedius in middle ear (Hyperacusis)
CHORDA TYMPANI – 1.) Taste anterior two thirds of tongue which bypass the
submandibular ganglion and 2.) Parasympathetic secretory to submandibular and sublingual glands
which synapse in submandibular ganglion. All these travel with the lingual nerve (V3)
OUTSIDE SKULL – DISTAL TO STYLOMASTOID FORAMEN
POSTERIOR AURICULAR NERVE – Motor for scalp muscles around ear.
Occipital branch
Auricular branch
STYLOHYOID NERVE – Motor to Stylohyoid
DIGASTRIC NERVE – Motor to anterior belly of the digastric
IN PAROTID GLAND (The Zebra Bit My Cat)
TEMPORAL (FRONTAL) NERVE – Motor frontalis, obicularis oculi (efferent corneal
reflex) and corrugator supercilli (frowning muscle)
ZYGOMATIC NERVE – Obicularis oculi (close eyes)
BUCCAL NERVE – Motor buccinator and other facial expressions.

2. MARGINAL MANDIBULAR – Motor muscles of lower lip and chin.
CERVICAL NERVE – Motor depressor anguli oris (triangular muscle) - frowning