Anatomy of human extrinsic cardiac nerves and ganglia

Abstract

The anatomy of the human extrinsic cardiac nerves and ganglia was reinvestigated because descriptions of human cardiac innervation vary, detailed analyses of subhuman mammalian cardiac innervation reveal considerable similarities among species and the anatomic pattern of cardiac innervation observed in subhuman mammals differs significantly from those described for humans. The presence of a consistent pattern of cardiac innervation in subhuman mammals raised the question as to whether a similar pattern exists in humans. To investigate this, the cervical and thoracic autonomic nerves and ganglia were dissected in 13 embalmed and 10 autopsy cadavers. All major sympathetic cardiopulmonary nerves were found to arise from the stellate ganglia and the caudal halves of the cervical sympathetic trunks below the level of the cricoid cartilage. These sympathetic cardiopulmonary nerves usually consisted of 3 nerves on the right side and 4 on the left. In contrast to widely accepted reports, no sympathetic cardiopulmonary nerves were found to arise from the superior cervical ganglia or the thoracic sympathetic trunks inferior to the stellate ganglia. Parasympathetic cardiopulmonary nerves were found to arise from the recurrent laryngeal nerves and the thoracic vagi immediately distal to them. These nerves interconnected with sympathetic cardiopulmonary nerves anterior and posterior to the main pulmonary artery to form the ventral and dorsal cardiopulmonary plexuses. These plexuses contained relatively large discrete nerves as well as smaller interconnections. Emerging from these plexuses to innervate the ventricles were 3 distinct relatively large cardiac nerves, the right and left coronary cardiac nerves and the left lateral cardiac nerve. In addition to these 3 major nerves, small cardiac nerves arose from the plexuses and the thoracic vagi. Histologic examination of representative dissections confirmed the presence of neural tissue and identified the locations of neuronal cell bodies in these structures. Cell bodies were located in the nodose, superior cervical, middle cervical, stellate and thoracic sympathetic ganglia. The middle cervical ganglia varied in size and number. Neuronal cell bodies were found in the cervical and thoracic sympathetic trunks and in small mediastinal ganglia located along the courses of the cardiopulmonary and cardiac nerves. Marked similarities exist between the anatomy of the cardiopulmonary nerves and ganglia of humans and baboons.