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 |
| TA98 | A12.2.05.036 |
| TA2 | 4404 |
| FMA | 49608 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
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 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 page 556 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)
 | This cardiovascular system article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |