Quick Facts
Origin: Inferior hypogastric plexus.
Course: Passes along the posterior surface of the seminal vesicles and prostate, following the urethra into the posterior portions of the penis.
Branches: None.
Supply: Mixed nerves conveying sympathetic and parasympathetic efferent fibers to the penis.
Origin
The cavernous nerves originate from the inferior hypogastric plexus.
Course
The cavernous nerves run bilaterally down the posterior pelvic surfaces.
In males, they run posterior to the seminal vesicles, and the prostate. They follow the urethra from the prostate through the urogenital diaphragm into the penis where fibers distribute to the erectile tissue of the corpus cavernosum and corpus spongiosum.
Branches
There are no named branches.
Supplied Structures
The cavernous nerves innervate the erectile tissues of the penis in males. They convey both sympathetic and parasympathetic efferent fibers to the erectile tissue of the penis.
Visceral sensory fibers carrying afferents from the penis pass through cavernous nerve.
