Retromandibular vein

Posterior facial vein
Veins of the head and neck (retromandibular vein visible at center).
Dissection, showing salivary glands of right side (retromandibular vein visible at bottom center).
Details
Source	Superficial temporal vein, maxillary veins
Drains to	External jugular vein
Artery	Facial artery
Identifiers
Latin	Vena retromandibularis, vena facialis posterior
TA98	A12.3.05.031
TA2	4831
FMA	50928
Anatomical terminology

The retromandibular vein (temporomaxillary vein, posterior facial vein), formed by the union of the superficial temporal and maxillary veins, descends in the substance of the parotid gland, superficial to the external carotid artery but beneath the facial nerve, between the ramus of the mandible and the sternocleidomastoideus muscle.

It divides into two branches:

• an anterior, which passes forward and joins anterior facial vein, to form the common facial vein, which then drains into the internal jugular vein.
• a posterior, which is joined by the posterior auricular vein and becomes the external jugular vein.

Parrot's sign is a sensation of pain when pressure is applied to the retromandibular region.

Additional images

• 
  Lateral head anatomy detail

References

This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 646 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

External links

• Anatomy photo:27:13-0103 at the SUNY Downstate Medical Center - "Infratemporal fossa: The Pterygoid plexus of Veins"
• lesson4 at The Anatomy Lesson by Wesley Norman (Georgetown University) (parotid2)
• Tufts.edu