Cranial Nerves
General
BACKGROUND
Abnormalities found when examining the ‘cranial nerves’ may arise from lesions at different levels (Fig. 5.1) including:
When examining the cranial nerves, you need to establish whether there is an abnormality in cranial nerve function, the nature and extent of the abnormality and any associations.
COMMON MISTAKES
Sometimes, when summarising neurological examination, people divide it into ‘cranial nerves’ and examination of the ‘peripheral nervous system’. This distinction misleads. By thinking of the examination in this way, you can forget that you are examining not just the cranial or peripheral nerves but also their central nervous system connections. To prevent ensnaring yourself in this trap, it is useful to think of examination of the ‘head and neck’ rather than the ‘cranial nerves’, and the ‘limbs’ rather than the ‘peripheral nervous system’. Tradition is so strong that this book continues to describe examination under the heading ‘cranial nerves’, but you know better…
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