Cranial Nerves Lab Report

Introduction Cranial nerves are part of the peripheral nervous system, PNS. They relay motor and sensory data to the oral musculature and muscles of the pharynx and larynx. This information is pivotal for operating proper speech and swallowing mechanisms. Therefore, it is important that the speech-language pathologist be familiar with the name, distribution, and anatomy of all of the cranial nerves. It is also necessary to know the testing procedures involved with cranial nerves as well as signs of abnormal functioning in order to better serve clients. There are twelve pairs of cranial nerves. Each pair has a name and a Roman numeral assigned to it. These nerves are developed in utero during gestation. These nerves leave the brain and pass through the foramina of the skull in order to travel to the sensory organs or to the muscles of the head and neck that they innervate. Cranial nerves may serve motor functions, sensory functions, or both. All cranial nerves serve some relation to the processes of speech, language, and hearing. However, this summary will only focus on the seven cranial nerves that are unequivocally concerned with speech production and hearing.

Cranial Nerve V: Trigeminal The trigeminal nerve is

The client must first wiggle their tongue around to relax it in order to prevent fasciculations of a normal tongue. Signs of lower motor neuron damage are a shrunken side on the same side as the lesion, this may cause spontaneous contractions of the tongue. Then the clinician will request the client to stick their tongue out to make sure it is in midline and their lip musculature is strong. There are other tests such as moving the tongue from side to side, elevating the tongue, and producing sounds in isolation. Signs of upper motor neuron damage would be tongue deviating to the opposite side of the lesion and constant imprecision (Adler & Webb,