The relevance of the superior cervical ganglion for cardiac autonomic innervation in health and disease: a systematic review

Figures

• 

  Fig. 1. Anatomy of the cardiac sympathetic nervous system. Schematic drawing of the cardiac sympathetic nervous system. Preganglionic sympathetic axons from spinal cord neurons synapse with postganglionic sympathetic neurons in the ganglia of the sympathetic chain, running bilaterally along the vertebral column. Postganglionic fibers from these ganglia form the sympathetic cardiac nerves, which join in the cardiac plexus together with the parasympathetic nerves, providing the autonomic innervation of the heart. The superior cervical ganglia are indicated in bright yellow. The superior cardiac nerve, the existence of which is disputed in some studies, is shown in bright yellow. Figure adapted from “Human adult cardiac autonomic innervation: controversies in anatomical knowledge and relevance for cardiac neuromodulation,” by Wink et al. Autonomic Neuroscience, 2020. 227: p. 102,674. Copyright 2020 by Copyright Clearance Center

• 

  Fig. 2. PRISMA flow diagram

• 

  Fig. 3. A Quality assessment of morphological studies using the QUACS scale. B Quality assessment of functional in vivo studies using the ARRIVE guidelines 2.0. C Quality assessment of functional in vitro studies using the adjusted ARRIVE guidelines 2.0

• 

  Fig. 4. Evolutionary overview of cardiac sympathetic innervation. This figure is derived from “Comparative morphological configuration of the cardiac nervous system in lorises and galagos (Infraorder Lorisoformes, Strepsirrhini, Primates) with evolutionary perspective,” by Thorington and Kawashima. The Anatomical Record: Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology, 2011 Mar;294(3):412–26. Copyright 2011 by Copyright Clearance Center

• 

  Fig. 5. Connection of the sympathetic SCG with the nodose ganglion and carotid body in mouse. The middle panel shows a 3D reconstruction image of an embryonic female murine (18.5 days) spinal cord, carotid arteries (indicated in red), SCG (yellow), and nodose ganglion (green). Ao aorta, CB carotid body, LCA left carotid artery, LSA left subclavian artery, NG nodose ganglion, RCA right carotid artery, RSA right subclavian artery, SCG superior cervical ganglion