Carotid Triangle Anatomy

Carotid Triangle

Describe the boundaries and contents of the carotid triangle.
Answer.

Carotid Triangle Boundaries

Head And Neck Side front and back of the neck Carotid triangle

Anterosuperiorly: Posterior belly of the digastric and the stylohyoid.

Anteroinferiorly: Superior belly of the omohyoid.

Posteriorly: Anterior border of the sternocleidomastoid.

Carotid Triangle Contents

Arteries

Common carotid artery
Internal carotid artery
The external carotid artery and its first five branches (superior thyroid, lingual, facial, ascending pharyngeal and occipital arteries)

Veins

Nerves

Vagus nerve
Superior laryngeal branch of the vagus nerve, dividing into the external and internal laryngeal nerves
Spinal accessory nerve running obliquely backwards and downwards over the internal jugular vein
Hypoglossal nerve running horizontally forward over the external carotid, internal carotid and lingual (loop) arteries
Ansa cervicalis
Sympathetic chain

Lymph nodes Deep cervical lymph nodes

Lymph nodes Special structures

Describe the origin, course and termination of Internal Carotid Artery. List its parts and their branches.
Answer.

Internal Carotid Artery Origin, course and termination

It begins as one of the two terminal branches of common carotid artery at the upper border of the thyroid cartilage.
It enters the cranial cavity through the carotid canal and foramen lacerum.
In the cranial cavity, it traverses through the cavernous sinus and finally terminates at the base of brain by dividing into anterior and middle cerebral arteries.

Internal Carotid Artery Parts and branches

Cervical part:
- No branch
Petrous part:
- Caroticotympanic branches to the middle ear
- Pterygoid branch, which enters the pterygoid canal
Cavernous part:
- Cavernous branches to the wall of cavernous sinus and trigeminal ganglion
- Hypophyseal branches to the hypophysis cerebri
- Meningeal branches
Cerebral part