अमूर्त

Ambiguous Descriptions in Gross Anatomy

B Venugopala Rao,and Viswakanth Bhagavathula

Text books of human anatomy still describe of the superior root of ansa cervicalis (C1 fibers) as a “branch” of hypoglossal nerve. Since topographically, it seen as leaving the hypoglossal nerve, this superior root of ansa heads the list of branches of hypoglossal nerve. The same principle is not applied to the chorda tympani which, in fact, is “seen” as branching out from the lingual nerve in the infratemporal fossa but it is described as “joining” the lingual nerve indicating a functional connection. Other anomalous descriptions including the insertion of the quadriceps femoris, extent of inguinal canal and certain names of foramina in the skull and mandible which may be causing confusion to the students of anatomy are discussed in this article and necessary recommendation to revise the nomenclature is proposed.