Cranial Nerves

Nerves can be divided broadly as spinal nerves and cranial nerves: the latter which is directly from the brain. There are 12 pairs of cranial nerves:

1. CN I – Olfactory nerve (smell)
2. CN II – Optic nerve (sight)
3. CN III – Oculomotor nerve (eye movements, control of pupil and lens)
4. CN IV – Trochlear nerve (eye movements)
5. CN V – Trigeminal nerve (sensory information from face and mouth, chewing)
6. CN VI – Abducens nerve (eye movements)
7. CN VII – Facial nerve (taste, tear and salivary glands secretion, facial expressions)
8. CN VIII – Vestibulocochlear nerve (hearing and sense of balance)
9. CN IX – Glossopharyngeal nerve (taste, swallowing, parotid gland secretion, sensory information from oral cavity, information about blood)
10. CN X – Vagus nerve (sensory and motor signals to and from many internal organs, glands and muscles)
11. CN XI – Accessory nerve (movement of SCM and trapezius, which are neck/shoulder muscles)
12. CN XII – Hypoglossal nerve (tongue movements)

As there are so many nerves and the names are all varied, there is a simple (yet very obscene) mnemonic to help medical students remember the names and order of nerves:

Oh, Oh, Oh, To Touch And Feel Virgin Girls’ Vaginas And Hymens
or
Oh, Oh, Oh, To Touch And Feel A Girl’s Very Soft Hands
(where vestibulocochlear -> auditory)

It is also worth noting the mnemonic for the types of nerves is:

Some Say Marry Money, But My Brother Says Big Boobs Matter More

Perhaps the only way to survive medical school is through humour.