Corpus: Ascending pharyngeal artery

The ascending pharyngeal artery is a long, slender vascular branch of the external carotid artery, deeply embedded in the soft tissues of the neck.

The ascending pharyngeal artery is the smallest branch of the external carotid artery and its only medial branch. It originates in the carotid triangle, near the bifurcation of the carotid artery and then ascends almost vertically in the parapharyngeal space between the internal carotid artery and the lateral parts of the pharynx. In the region of the pharynx, its pharyngeal branches anastomose with the descending palatine artery. The vessel finally runs under the stylopharyngeus muscle and over the longus colli muscle to the base of the skull and enters the cranial cavity through the jugular foramen.

Branches of the ascending pharyngeal artery are:

• Pharyngeal branches: to the pharyngeal muscles
• Inferior tympanic artery: to the tympanic cavity
• Posterior meningeal artery: to the dura mater

Rarely, the ascending pharyngeal artery can originate from the internal carotid artery.