Problems help: how would the damage to the pnemogastric nerve affect breathing - Help.com

From wikipedia:

The vagus nerve (also called pneumogastric nerve or cranial nerve X) is the tenth of twelve paired cranial nerves, and is the only nerve that starts in the brainstem (within the medulla oblongata) and extends, through the jugular foramen, down below the head, to the abdomen. The vagus nerve is arguably the single most important nerve in the body.

It is called the pneumogastric nerve since it innervates both the lungs and the stomach.

The vagus nerve supplies motor parasympathetic fibers to all the organs except the suprarenal glands, from the neck down to the second segment of the transverse colon.

This means that the vagus nerve is responsible for such varied tasks as heart rate, gastrointestinal peristalsis, sweating, and quite a few muscle movements in the mouth, including speech (via the recurrent laryngeal nerve) and keeping the larynx open for breathing. It also receives some sensation from the outer ear, via the Auricular branch (also known as Alderman’s nerve) and part of the meninges.

Damage to this nerve can result in a hoarse voice, difficulty in swallowing and choking when drinking fluid.

Treatment:

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy using a pacemaker-like device implanted in the chest is a treatment used since 1997 to control seizures in epilepsy patients and has recently been approved for treating drug-resistant cases of clinical depression. Mild degree of intermittent VNS by daily performance of certain breathing exercises (Pranayama) over a period of several weeks lowers blood pressure and the heart rate in persons with elevated blood pressure and/or elevated heart rate, and may also stabilize mood and affect.

The valsalva maneuver may activate the vagus nerve and is a ‘natural’ way to achieve the same effect. Patients with atrial fibrillation, supraventricular tachycardia and other illnesses may be trained to perform the valsalva maneuver (or find it for themselves).

Vagotomy (cutting of the vagus nerve) is a now-obsolete therapy that was performed for peptic ulcer disease.