Diploic veins
Diploic veins | |
---|---|
Details | |
Drains from | diploë |
Identifiers | |
Latin | venae diploicae |
TA98 | A12.3.05.201 |
TA2 | 4867 |
FMA | 70858 |
Anatomical terminology |
The diploic veins are large, thin-walled valveless
Types of diploic veins
The frontal, which opens into the supraorbital vein and the superior sagittal sinus.
The anterior temporal, which is confined chiefly to the
The posterior temporal, which is situated in the
The occipital, the largest of the four, which is confined to the
It has been noted that "The tunnels formed by diploic veins are among the few known skeletal markers of soft tissue alteration".[1]
Functionality
The function of diploic veins is unclear. One function that has been suggested is brain cooling. In this account, venous blood from the scalp, cooled by its sweat glands, passes to the pachymeningeal veins by way of the diploic venous system.[1] The diploic venous system in modern humans is more complex and developed than in chimpanzees and this has been suggested to be a consequence of the greater need of the human brain for such cooling.[1]
References
- ^ PMID 10096685.
- ISBN 978-0-7020-5230-9.
- S2CID 3433918.