Nerve
Abducens nerve (CN VI)
Lateral rectus muscle
High-yield
Supplies only lateral rectus (LR6); palsy → medial deviation and horizontal diplopia. A false-localising sign in raised intracranial pressure.
Overview
The sixth cranial nerve, supplying the lateral rectus muscle that abducts the eye; it has a long intracranial course making it vulnerable to raised pressure.
Reference facts
- Roots
Motor (cranial nerve)
- Course
Emerges at the pontomedullary junction, runs a long course up the clivus, through the cavernous sinus and superior orbital fissure
- Motor
Lateral rectus muscle (abducts the eye)
- Sensory
None