The pterygoid venous plexus is an extensive valveless plexus of veins that parallels the medial two thirds of the maxillary artery on the lateral aspect of the medial pterygoid muscle, within the infratemporal fossa.
What does the pterygoid venous plexus do?
Function. The veins of the pterygoid plexus have valves, and the plexus acts as a small pump assisting the return of blood by the contractions of the lateral pterygoid muscle.
What is the significance of the pterygoid plexus of veins in dentistry?
It is connected to the cavernous sinus and the pharyngeal venous plexus. It is an important region because of the potential to spread dental infection; it can also be inadvertently penetrated when administering a block injection of the posterior superior alveolar nerve, potentially resulting in a haematoma.
How pterygoid venous plexus is formed?
The pterygoid venous plexus (plural: plexuses) is a small intercommunicating cluster of venules that is intimately related to the lateral pterygoid muscle, lying both intramuscularly and around the muscle. The plexus is formed by very small veins that are the venous counterparts to the branches of the maxillary artery.
What is emissary vein?
The emissary veins are valveless vessels which connect the superficial veins of the scalp with deeper veins, e.g. diploic veins of the skull bones. From: Essential Clinical Anatomy of the Nervous System, 2015.
What is the pterygoid plexus of veins What does it form and what is its significance?
The pterygoid venous plexus is a venous network that surrounds the pterygoid segment of the maxillary artery. The veins of pterygoid plexus converge on its anterior end to form the maxillary vein, which conveys the blood from the plexus into the retromandibular vein. …
What are the veins that contribute to the pterygoid venous plexus?
The pterygoid plexus of veins becomes the maxillary vein. The maxillary vein and the superficial temporal vein later join to become the retromandibular vein. The posterior branch of the retromandibular vein and posterior auricular vein then form the external jugular vein, which empties into the subclavian vein.
Are bridging veins emissary veins?
The bridging veins (BVs) derive from the embryonic pial-arachnoidal veins and connect the pial veins with the dural sinuses or plexuses. The emissary veins (EVs) on the other hand represent the remaining connections of the superficial venous system with the dural venous system during the development of the skull.
What is the use of emissary vein?
The function of the emissary veins is to provide selective cooling of the brain, as well as an alternative drainage route of the brain in the case of obstruction of dural venous sinuses.
Does pterygoid plexus drain into cavernous sinus?
The inferior ophthalmic vein may drain posteriorly directly into the cavernous sinus or to the pterygoid plexus. The pterygoid plexus communicates with the cavernous sinus through the foramina ovale, spinosum, and rotundum.
What is an emissary vein?
The emissary veins are valveless vessels which connect the superficial veins of the scalp with deeper veins, e.g. diploic veins of the skull bones.
What do emissary veins drain into?
The emissary veins connect the extracranial venous system with the intracranial venous sinuses. They connect the veins outside the cranium to the venous sinuses inside the cranium. They drain from the scalp, through the skull, into the larger meningeal veins and dural venous sinuses.
What is the path of the emissary vein?
One notable emissary vein, the Vein of Vesalius, travels through the sphenoidal emissary foramen inferior to the zygomatic arch, connecting the pterygoid plexus with the cavernous sinus.
What does the interpterygoid emissary vein connect?
The interpterygoid emissary vein may be considered analogous to the emissary vein of the sphenoidal foramen of Vesalius, which has been described in humans. This emissary vein connects the cavernous sinus and the pterygoid plexus (Mettler, 1948 ).
What is the emissary plexus of the carotid artery?
The internal carotid venous plexus that acts as an emissary plexus connecting the internal jugular vein with the cavernous sinus via the carotid canal. The petrosquamous sinus, as an emissary vein connecting the transverse sinus and retromandibular vein.
What are the sphenoidal emissary veins?
Sphenoidal emissary veins (Vesalian veins) ( Fig. 20.12) connect the cavernous sinus with the pterygoid plexus or pharyngeal plexus of veins. 17, 18, 19 These veins are not constant and are found in only approximately one in three individuals. 17 When present, the foramen for this vessel is found just medial to the foramen ovale.
