title: Efferent and afferent innervations of Mueller's muscle related to involuntary contraction of the levator muscle: important for avoiding injury during eyelid surgery.
abstract: Because stretching of Mueller's muscle induces involuntary contraction of the levator muscle, we hypothesised that Mueller's muscle functions as a serial kind of muscle spindle of the levator muscle. To confirm the presence and location of efferent and afferent innervations of Mueller's muscle, cadavers' eyelids were microscopically and macroscopically examined, and the resultant findings were physiologically confirmed in patients' eyelids during surgery. Fine neural myelinated structures acting as a mechanoreceptor were found in the proximal Mueller's muscle. Mueller's muscle is doubly innervated by the unmyelinated sympathetic efferent nerve and the myelinated trigeminal proprioceptive afferent nerve, both of which run transversely on the proximal Mueller's muscle to join the lacrimal nerve. Electrical stimulation of the transverse nerve fibres induced involuntary contraction of both the levator muscle as the Hoffmann reflex and Mueller's muscle. Surgical injury to these nerve fibres should be avoided to preserve involuntary contraction of the levator muscle.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Shinshu University School of Medicine, Matsumoto, Nagano 390-8621, Japan.
authors.forename: Shunsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yuzuriha
authors.forename: Kiyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsuo
authors.forename: Yoshimasa
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ishigaki
authors.forename: Niroh
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
authors.forename: Kyutaro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kawagishi
authors.forename: Tetsuji
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Moriizumi
mesh_terms: D002102:Cadaver; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005143:Eyelids / Q000293:injuries / Q000294:innervation* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology*; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000294:innervation* / Q000502:physiology; D009412:Nerve Fibers / Q000502:physiology; D009475:Neurons, Afferent / Q000502:physiology; D009476:Neurons, Efferent / Q000502:physiology