Major Arteries of the Face and Oral Cavity The aorta ascends from the left ventricle of the heart. common carotid artery arises from the aorta and subdivides into:

Major Arteries of the Face and Oral Cavity

The aorta ascends from the left ventricle of the heart.

common carotid artery arises from the aorta and subdivides into:

Major Veins of the Face and Oral Cavity

internal carotid artery supplies blood to the brain and eyes

external carotid artery provides the major blood supply to the face and mouth
These branches supply the tongue, face, ears, and wall of the cranium.

Facial Artery
enters the face at the inferior border of the mandible and can be detected by gentle palpation of the mandibular notch

passes forward and upward across the cheek toward the angle of the mouth. Then it continues upward alongside the nose and ends at the medial canthus (inner corner) of the eye.

branches

Pharyngeal muscle

Soft plate

Tonsils

Posterior tongue

Submandibular gland

Muscles of face

Nasal septum

Nose

Eyelids

Lingual Artery

Branches

Entire tongue

Floor of mouth

Lingual gingiva

Portion of soft plate

Tonsils

Maxillary Artery

is the larger of the two terminal branches of the external carotid. It arises behind the angle of the mandible and supplies the deep structures of the face.

pterygoid artery supplies blood to the temporal muscle, masseter muscle, pterygoid muscles, and buccinator muscles.

inferior alveolar arteryalso comes from the maxillary artery. It enters the mandibular canal, along with the inferior alveolar nerve.

Branches

Anterior and middle superior alveolar arteries, with distribution to the maxillary incisors and cuspid teeth and to the maxillary sinuses

Posterior superior alveolar artery, with distribution to the maxillary molars and premolars and gingivae

Infraorbital artery, with distribution to the face.

Greater palatine artery, with distribution to the hard palate and lingual gingiva

Anterior superior alveolar artery, with distribution to the anterior teeth

Branches

lingual artery has distribution along the surface of the tongue.

inferior alveolar artery descends close to the medial surface of the mandibular ramus to the mandibular foramen; it then continues along the mandibular canal Opposite the first premolar, it divides into the incisive and mental branches

mylohyoid artery It supplies the mylohyoid muscle.

incisive branch continues anteriorly within the bone to supply the anterior teeth.

mental branch of the inferior alveolar artery passes outward through the mental foramen and anteriorly to supply the chin and lower lip.

Major Veins of the Face and Oral Cavity

The maxillary vein receives branches that correspond to those of the maxillary artery. These branches form the pterygoid plexus. The trunk of the maxillary vein passes backward behind the neck of the mandible.
The union of the temporal and maxillary veins forms the retromandibular vein. It descends within the parotid gland and divides into two branches. The anterior branch passes inward to join the facial vein. The posterior branch is joined by the posterior auricular vein and becomes the external jugular vein.
The external jugular vein empties into the subclavian vein. The facial vein begins near the side of the nose. It passes downward and crosses over the body of the mandible with the facial artery. It then passes outward and backward to unite with the anterior division of the retromandibular vein to form the common facial vein, which enters the internal jugular vein.

The deep facial vein courses from the pterygoid plexus to the facial vein. The lingual veins begin on the dorsum (top), sides, and undersurface of the tongue. They pass backward, following the course of the lingual artery and its branches, and terminate in the internal jugular vein.
The internal jugular vein, which corresponds to the common carotid artery, empties into the superior vena cava, which returns blood from the upper portion of the body to the right atrium of the heart.