Expansion
OVAL door for the big jaw nerve
Mnemonic
OVALE names its own contents:
- O - Otic ganglion, immediately below it
- V - V3, the mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve
- A - Accessory meningeal artery
- L - Lesser petrosal nerve
- E - Emissary veins
V3 is the only trigeminal division carrying motor fibres, to the muscles of mastication, which is why a lesion at the foramen ovale causes the jaw to deviate towards the affected side on opening.
The neighbouring foramina follow a simple rule: rotundum takes V2, ovale takes V3, and spinosum takes the middle meningeal artery.
Expansion
- CN V3 - Mandibular nerve, the main content
- Accessory meningeal artery - a smaller companion