The points of nerve entry and the intramuscular nerve branchings in the human muscles of mastication.
The sites of nerve entry and the intramuscular nerve branchings in the masseter, temporalis, medial and lateral pterygoid muscles were studied. A total of 55 muscles were taken from eight infants and only one adult subject. It was found that for each of the four muscles of mastication, the nerves entered at a nearly fixed point. The masseter and medial pterygoid have their origin, the temporalis very near to its insertion, the lateral pterygoid midway between its origin and its insertion. The intramuscular nerve branchings were investigated in the four muscles and, according to their relation to the direction of the muscle fibres, three patterns have been recognized. The results obtained were compared with those of other workers on other muscles.
D000328:Adult; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008410:Masticatory Muscles / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000294:innervation*; D009411:Nerve Endings / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D009469:Neuromuscular Junction / Q000033:anatomy & histology