Anatom3DRecurrent laryngeal nerve
Nervus laryngeus recurrens · Zvratný hrtanový nerv
Nervous system
Looks like
A branch of the vagus looping under the aortic arch on the left and the subclavian artery on the right, climbing back to the voice box.
What it does
Moves almost all voice-box muscles.
Keeping it well
At risk during thyroid and chest surgery; new hoarseness can also be a first sign of a lung or chest tumour pressing on it.
Related conditions
- Amyloidosis (AL and ATTR)
- Botulism
- Chickenpox (varicella)
- Chronic neuropathic pain
- Chronic pain syndrome
- Croup & epiglottitis
- Fibromyalgia
- Guillain-Barré syndrome
- Head and neck cancer
- Laryngitis & voice disorders
- Lyme disease
- Myasthenia gravis
- Peripheral neuropathy
- Rabies
- Restless legs syndrome
- Shingles (herpes zoster)
- Tetanus
- Vitamin B1, C and other deficiencies