186 Cranial Nerves

General sensory fibers from the concha and the skin of the external ear, the
external auditory canal, and the external surface of the tympanic membrane are
carried in the auricular branch (see Figure X—6). Stimulation of the auricular
nerve of cranial nerve X in the external auditory meatus can cause reflex coughing,
vomiting, and even fainting through reflex activation of the dorsal vagal motor
nucleus. Sensory branches from the meninges of the posterior cranial fossa are
carried in the meningeal nerve. The peripheral processes pass into the jugular fossa
and enter the superior vagal ganglion where their nerve cell bodies are located.
The central processes pass upward through the jugular foramen and enter the
medulla, then descend in the spinal trigeminal tract to synapse in its nucleus.