The suboccipital venous plexus drains deoxygenated blood from the back of the head.
It communicates with the
external vertebral venous plexuses. The external vertebral venous plexuses travel inferiorly from this
suboccipital region to drain into the
brachiocephalic vein
The left and right brachiocephalic veins (previously called innominate veins) are major veins in the upper chest, formed by the union of each corresponding internal jugular vein and subclavian vein. This is at the level of the sternoclavicular jo ...
. The
occipital vein
The occipital vein is a vein of the scalp. It originates from a plexus around the external occipital protuberance and superior nuchal line to the back part of the vertex of the skull. It usually drains into the internal jugular vein, but may als ...
joins in the formation of the plexus deep to the musculature of the back and from here drains into the external jugular vein.
The plexus surrounds segments of the
vertebral artery
The vertebral arteries are major arteries of the neck. Typically, the vertebral arteries originate from the subclavian arteries. Each vessel courses superiorly along each side of the neck, merging within the skull to form the single, midline ...
.
Veins of the head and neck
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