Which of the following lists all five main branches of CN VII that provide innervation to the facial muscles?

• A. Temporal, Zygomatic, Buccal, Mandibular, Cervical
• B. Temporal, Zygomatic, Buccal, Mandibular
• C. Temporal, Zygomatic, Buccal, Cervical, Ophthalmic
• D. Frontal, Parietal, Nasal, Lacrimal, Zygomatic

Answer: (A)

Five terminal branches of CN VII innervate the muscles of facial expression: temporal, zygomatic, buccal, mandibular, and cervical. After the facial nerve exits the skull, it divides within the parotid gland into these branches, which reach different facial regions. The temporal branch supplies forehead muscles like the frontalis, the zygomatic branch targets the muscles around the eye such as orbicularis oculi, the buccal branch serves cheek and upper lip muscles, the mandibular branch covers lower lip and chin muscles, and the cervical branch goes to the platysma. Other options mix in non-CN VII elements (such as ophthalmic, a division of CN V) or include non-nerve terms, so they don’t reflect the actual innervation pattern of the facial muscles.