2nd intercostal nerve

Nervus intercostalis II

NervousNervesThoraxLeft and right

View left in 3D View right in 3D

What it is
The ventral ramus of the 2nd thoracic nerve. It runs round the chest in the costal groove on the underside of the 2nd rib, between the internal and innermost intercostal muscles and below the intercostal vein and artery, ending beside the sternum as an anterior cutaneous branch.
Function
Motor to the intercostal muscles; sensation from a band of skin (lateral and anterior cutaneous branches) and from the parietal pleura.
Size
About 2-3 mm thick; 22-27 cm long
Clinical note
Its lateral cutaneous branch, the intercostobrachial nerve, crosses the armpit to the inner arm and is commonly cut during axillary lymph-node surgery.

Nearby nervous structures 1st intercostal nerve, 3rd intercostal nerve, 4th intercostal nerve, 5th intercostal nerve, 6th intercostal nerve, 7th intercostal nerve, T2 spinal nerve, T3 spinal nerve, T4 spinal nerve, T5 spinal nerve