The abducens nerve
Abducens nerve (VI) · nervus abducens
The cranial nerve that turns your eye outwards.
What it does
The abducens nerve leaves the brainstem at the border of the pons and medulla and supplies one eye muscle, the lateral rectus, which pulls the eye outwards towards the ear.
Surprising fact
It runs a long route along the base of the skull, so raised pressure inside the head can stretch it and cause double vision even when the problem is far away.
Why it matters
If you see double when looking to one side, a weak abducens nerve is one possible cause, and doctors test it by asking you to follow a finger sideways.
Nearby
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Sources
Drafted with AI help; awaiting a human fact-check against these sources.
Open in the 3D atlas · Suggest a correction · Not medical advice.
3D models: Z-Anatomy & BodyParts3D (CC BY-SA 4.0 / 2.1 JP). Card text CC BY 4.0.