Anatomy & Histology · patient case question
Taste and general sensation from the ANTERIOR two-thirds of the tongue are carried, respectively, by:
Patient case: A lesion on the side of the tongue
Patient: Male, 63 years old
Chief Complaint: “There is a rough patch on the side of my tongue.”
Background: Forty pack-year smoking history, daily alcohol. No prior oral lesions.
Findings: A 1.5 cm indurated white and red lesion on the posterior lateral border of the tongue on the left. Incisional biopsy performed under local anaesthesia. At review the patient reports altered taste and reduced sensation over the area.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. Chorda tympani (CN VII) and lingual nerve (V3)
- A. CORRECT. The anterior two-thirds has a split supply: TASTE travels in the CHORDA TYMPANI, a branch of the facial nerve, while GENERAL sensation travels in the LINGUAL NERVE from V3. The chorda tympani joins the lingual nerve in the infratemporal fossa, which is why a lingual nerve injury during third molar surgery can cost the patient taste as well as touch on that side.
- B. CN IX serves the posterior third, not the anterior two-thirds.
- C. The taste half is right, but general sensation anteriorly is the lingual nerve, not CN IX.
- D. This reverses the two. The lingual nerve is the general sensory nerve; the chorda tympani is the taste nerve.
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