Platysma muscle additionally innervated by a variant anterior branch of the great auricular nerve: a case report

Damage to the great auricular nerve, with consequent clinical deficits, is a common surgical complication in facial aesthetic and in head and neck procedures such as parotidectomy, neck dissection, rhytidectomy and platysma flap operations. Hence, a thorough knowledge of nerve anatomy, particularly its potential variations, is critical in reducing the associated operative morbidity. Accordingly, we report an unusual variation of the anterior branch of the great auricular nerve noted in an 81-year-old female cadaver. The nerve was observed to course into the submandibular region anterior and superficial to the internal jugular vein, communicating with the cervical branch of the facial nerve, while independently innervating the platysma muscle. Although several anatomical variations of the branches of the cervical plexus have been documented,  our report  describes unique innervation of the platysma muscle by the great auricular nerve, which provides a new insight on the motor component of the nerve.