Inspection of a patient’s head, neck, and oral cavity is part of the routine daily assessment performed by a registered nurse (RN) during inpatient care. There are also several head and neck conditions that the RN may be the first to notice after a patient is admitted that require notification of the health care provider. Let’s get started by reviewing the basic anatomy and physiology of the head and neck and common medical conditions. Visit LibreTexts: Medicine for the anatomy of this concept