A 72-year-old male is admitted to the hospital with complaints of severe chest pain radiating to his left arm. ECG examination provides evidence of significant myocardial infarction of the posterior wall of the left ventricle. Which of the following nerves is responsible for the radiation of pain to the arm during myocardial infarction?
The intercostobrachial nerve is the lateral cutaneous branch of the second intercostal nerve. It serves a sensory function both in the thoracic wall and medial aspect of the arm. The phrenic nerve arises from spinal nerves C3 to C5 and innervates the diaphragm. This nerve has no branches that pass into the arm. The vagus nerve is CNX and is a major supplier of autonomic function to the gut, up to the left colic flexure, and also provides some autonomic motor and sensory supply to organs in the head, neck, and thorax. The greater thoracic splanchnic nerve originates in the thorax from the sympathetic chain at the levels of T5 to T9 and innervates abdominal structures. The suprascapular nerve originates from the upper trunk of the brachial plexus and receives fibers primarily from C5 and C6. It innervates the supraspinatus and the infraspinatus.
Phrenic
Vagus
Intercostobrachial
Greater splanchnic
Thorax