Sonography of the hypoglossal nerve in the neck: visualization and first clinical experience

Purpose: The hypoglossal nerve provides the motor innervation for the tongue. A lesion of the nerve can lead to dysphagia, dysarthria, and finally to atrophy of the tongue. Established imaging protocols with MRI and CT solely include the assessment of the supposed path of the nerve and do not allow the direct visualization of the nerve. The aim of this study is to determine the feasibility of the direct sonographic visualization of the nerve and to evaluate it in a clinical setting. Material & methods: First, the nerve was marked with ink in 24 neck sides of 12 fresh human cadavers. Subsequently the nerve was ex…