Illustrated Encyclopedia of Human Anatomic Variation: Opus II: Cardiovascular System: Veins: Head, Neck, and Thorax

External Jugular Veins

Ronald A. Bergman, PhD
Adel K. Afifi, MD, MS
Ryosuke Miyauchi, MD
Peer Review Status: Internally Peer Reviewed

The external jugular veins are so variable that it is not possible to determine a "normal pattern" (Poynter).

Both veins may be very small, or one may be much larger than the other.

The external jugular may be missing on one or both sides; the veins that usually form it then open into the internal jugular vein.

It may be formed merely by the the posterior auricular vein.

On occasion it receives the facial, lingual, or the cephalic veins.

It may pass over the clavicle and open into the cephalic, subclavian, or internal jugular.

The vein is sometimes doubled.

The external jugular may descend posterior to the inferior belly of the omohyoid.

In some cases it forms an anulus around the clavicle.

The vein occasionally receives a lingual vein or an accessory external thoracic that ascends subcutaneously from the region of the nipple.

Image 408 Part 1, Image 402 Part 2

Occipital

Image 110

References

Anson, B.J.,Ed. (1966) Morris' Human Anatomy, 12th ed., The Blakiston Division, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.

Bergman, R.A., Thompson, S.A., Afifi, A.K. and F.A. Saadeh. (1988) Compendium of Human Anatomic Variation: Catalog, Atlas and World Literature. Urban & Schwarzenberg, Baltimore and Munich.

Brown, S. (1941) The external jugular vein in American Whites and Negroes. Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 28:213-226.

Demarquay, (1844) Anomalie veineuse; Les veines jugulaires antérieure et les jugulaires externs. Trachéotomie. Bull. et Mém. de la Soc. Anatomique de Paris XIX(3):78.

Duval, -. (1891) Veines jugulaires superficielles anormales. Bull. et Mém. de la Soc. Anatomique de Paris 5:232-233.

Gruber, W. (1872) Verlauf eines der starken Endäste einer am Anfange und am Ende gablig geteilten Vena jugularis externa (posterior) durch das Trigonum sternocleidomastoideum. Arch f. Pathologische Anatomie u. Physiol. u. f. Klinische Medicin 45(2):188.

Henle, J. (1869) Handbuch der Systematischen Anatomie des Menschen. Von Freidrich Vieweg und Sohn, Braunschweig.

Horner, W. E. (1818) A case of unusual arrangement in the ascending cava and in the external jugular veins of the human subject. Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 1(2):401-405.

Latarjet, A. (1948) Testut's Traite d'Anatomie Humaine, 9th ed., G.Doin & Cie,, Paris.

Mori, M. (1929) Ein Fall von verdoppelterVena cava inferior. Igaku - Kenkiu 3(9):1343-1345. In Japanese.

Nakano, K. (1931) Uber die persistierenden Vv. supracardinales als Verdopplung der V. cava inferior. Hokkaidô - Igaku - Zasshi 9:10891096. In Japanese.

Schaefer, E.A., Symington, J. T.H. Bryce., Eds. (1915) Quain's Anatomy, 11th ed., Longmans, Green, and Co., London.

Tadokoro, H. (1930) Ein Fall von linksseitiger Vena cava inferior, welcher beginnt mit den Zusammenfluss der V. hypogastrica communis (V.iliaca int. comm.) und der beiden Vv. iliacae externae. Kaibôgaku - Zasschi 2:1029 -1036. In Japanese.

Taguchi, K. (1901) Über die Varietäten der Vena cava inferior beim Menschen. Juntendô - Iji - Kenkiukwai - Zasshi 343:1-17. In Japanese.

Wilde, J.C. (1740) Observationes Anatomicae Rariores. Obseruatio II. Vena iugulari externa, quoad progressum, triplici, quoad insertionem autem quadruplici. Comentarii Academiae Scientiarvm Imperialis Petropolitanae 12:316-318.

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