The facial vein usually unites with the anterior branch of the retromandibular vein to form the common facial vein, which crosses the

external carotid artery The external carotid artery is a major artery of the head and neck. It arises from the common carotid artery when it splits into the external and internal carotid artery. External carotid artery supplies blood to the face and neck. Structure T ...

and enters the internal jugular vein at a variable point below the

hyoid bone The hyoid bone (lingual bone or tongue-bone) () is a horseshoe-shaped bone situated in the anterior midline of the neck between the chin and the thyroid cartilage. At rest, it lies between the base of the mandible and the third cervical vertebr ...

. From near its termination a communicating branch often runs down the anterior border of the sternocleidomastoideus to join the lower part of the anterior jugular vein. The common facial vein is not present in all individuals.

References

External links

* () Veins of the head and neck Common vein {{Portal bar, Anatomy