Otic ganglion

It is in relation, laterally, with the trunk of the mandibular nerve at the point where the motor and sensory roots join; medially, with the cartilaginous part of the auditory tube, and the origin of the tensor veli palatini; posteriorly, with the middle meningeal artery.

The preganglionic parasympathetic fibres originate in the inferior salivatory nucleus of the glossopharyngeal nerve.

The fibers pass through the ganglion without relay and reach the parotid gland via the auriculotemporal nerve.

Frey's syndrome is caused by re-routing of parasympathetic and sympathetic fibres of the auriculotemporal nerve (V3) within the otic ganglion.

This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 897 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)