Answer to Superman
Correct answer is D. The indicated nerve is the phrenic nerve that arises from C3-C5 and innervates the diaphragm. It is part of the cervical plexus. In the chest, the phrenic nerve runs anterior to the root of the lung, in between he parietal pleura and the pericardium. In the cadaver, the nerve’s location is often mistaken by students because the parietal pleura and pericardium are sometimes difficult to separate. When the nerve is injured, one side of the diaphragm is unable to contract and respiration is impaired. When both phrenic nerves are severed, as what happened to Christopher Reeve in a horseback accident, typically what occurs when someone ”breaks their neck”, patients need to be intubated immediately to survive. In the case of Mr. Reeve, a paramedic immediately recognize what had transpired and began CPR. Mr. Reeve needed a tracheotomy and remained connected to a respiration device for the duration of his life.
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Answer to this question is based on material presented in lectures 6 of the Thorax Lecture Series.
= Right vagus n.
= Right esophageal plexus
= Right vagus n.
= Right phrenic n.
= Left recurrent laryngeal n.