Descending branch of occipital artery

Descending branch of occipital artery
Superficial dissection of the right side of the neck, showing the carotid and subclavian arteries.
Details
Source	occipital artery
Identifiers
Latin	ramus descendens arteriae occipitalis
TA	A12.2.05.036
FMA	49608
*Anatomical terminology* [edit on Wikidata]

The descending branch of occipital artery, the largest branch of the occipital, descends on the back of the neck, and divides into a superficial and deep portion.

The superficial portion runs beneath the Splenius, giving off branches which pierce that muscle to supply the Trapezius and anastomose with the ascending branch of the transverse cervical.
The deep portion runs down between the Semispinales capitis and colli, and anastomoses with the vertebral and with the a. profunda cervicalis, a branch of the costocervical trunk.

The anastomosis between these vessels assists in establishing the collateral circulation after ligature of the common carotid or subclavian artery.

References

This article incorporates text in the public domain from the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

Arteries of the head and neck

cervical branches (ascending palatine, tonsillar, submental, glandular)
facial branches (inferior labial
superior labial / nasal septum
lateral nasal
angular)

1st part / mandibular	anterior tympanic deep auricular middle meningeal (superior tympanic, petrosal) accessory meningeal inferior alveolar (mental, mylohyoid)

2nd part / pterygoid	to muscles of mastication (deep temporal, pterygoid, masseteric) buccal

3rd part / pterygopalatine	posterior superior alveolar infraorbital (anterior superior alveolar) descending palatine (greater palatine, lesser palatine) artery of the pterygoid canal sphenopalatine (posterior septal branches, posterior lateral nasal) pharyngeal

cervical	carotid sinus

petrous	Vidian caroticotympanic

cavernous/ ophthalmic	orbital group:anterior ethmoidal posterior ethmoidal lacrimal (lateral palpebral) medial palpebral terminal (supraorbital, supratrochlear, dorsal nasal) ocular group: central retinal ciliary (short posterior, long posterior, anterior) Circulus arteriosus major hypophysial (superior, inferior)

Brain	Circle of Willis ACA (anterior communicating, medial striate, Orbitofrontal artery) MCA (anterolateral central, Prefrontal artery, Superior terminal branch, Inferior terminal branch, Anterior temporal branch) posterior communicating anterior choroidal

vertebral artery

meningeal
spinal (posterior, anterior)
basilar: pontine
labyrinthine
cerebellar (AICA, SCA, PICA)
cerebral (PCA)

thyrocervical trunk

inferior thyroid	inferior laryngeal tracheal esophageal ascending cervical pharyngeal glandular branches

transverse cervical	superficial branch deep branch / dorsal scapular scapular anastomosis

suprascapular	acromial branch scapular anastomosis

costocervical trunk

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 4/18/2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.