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| Facial artery | |
|---|---|
 The arteries of the face and scalp. (External maxillary visible at bottom center.) | |
 Outline of side of face, showing chief surface markings. (Label for "Ext. Max. Art." at bottom left.) | |
| Details | |
| Source | External carotid artery |
| Branches | Ascending palatine artery tonsillar branch submental artery glandular branches inferior labial artery superior labial artery lateral nasal branch angular artery (terminal branch) |
| Vein | Anterior facial vein,posterior facial vein |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | arteria facialis, arteria maxillaris externa |
| TA98 | A12.2.05.020 |
| TA2 | 4388 |
| FMA | 49549 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
Thefacial artery, formerly called theexternal maxillary artery, is a branch of theexternal carotid artery that supplies blood to superficial structures of the medial regions of the face.
The facial artery arises in thecarotid triangle from theexternal carotid artery,[1][2] a little above thelingual artery, and sheltered by theramus of the mandible. It passes obliquely up beneath thedigastric andstylohyoid muscles, over which it arches to enter a groove on the posterior surface of thesubmandibular gland.[3]
It then curves upward over the body of the mandible at the antero-inferior angle of themasseter (the antegonial notch);[1][2][4] passes forward and upward across the cheek to the angle of the mouth, then ascends along the side of the nose, and ends at the medial commissure of the eye, under the name of theangular artery.[5]
The facial artery is remarkably tortuous. This is to accommodate itself to neck movements such as those of thepharynx inswallowing; and facial movements such as those of themandible,lips, andcheeks.
In the neck, its origin is superficial, being covered by the integument,platysma, and fascia; it then passes beneath thedigastric andstylohyoid muscles and part of thesubmandibular gland, but superficial to thehypoglossal nerve.
It lies upon themiddle pharyngeal constrictor and thesuperior pharyngeal constrictor, the latter of which separates it, at the summit of its arch, from the lower and back part of the tonsil.
On the face, where it passes over the body of the mandible, it is comparatively superficial, lying immediately beneath the dilators of the mouth. In its course over the face, it is covered by the integument, the fat of the cheek, and, near the angle of the mouth, by theplatysma,risorius, andzygomaticus major. It rests on thebuccinator andlevator anguli oris, and passes either over or under the infraorbital head of thelevator labii superioris.
Theanterior facial vein lies lateral/posterior to the artery,[2] and takes a more direct course across the face, where it is separated from the artery by a considerable interval. In the neck it lies superficial to the artery.
The branches of thefacial nerve cross the artery from behind forward.
The facial artery anastomoses with (among others) thedorsal nasal artery of theinternal carotid artery.
The branches of the facial artery are:[5]
Muscles supplied by the facial artery include:
The facial artery may be punctured duringmaxillofacial surgery, and is likely tohaemorrhage significantly.[6]
This article incorporates text in thepublic domain frompage 553 of the 20th edition ofGray's Anatomy(1918)
