Undivided Retromandibular Vein Continuing As External Jugular Vein With Facial Vein Draining Into It : An Anatomical Variation.

ABSTRACT

Despite the fact that the blueprint of the whole body is unravelled, faultlessly during the growth and development of an animal; but amazingly variations do occur. During routine dissection of head and neck in a middle aged cadaver in the Post Graduate Department of Anatomy of this medical college, we found variation in the formation of external jugular vein on both sides, which was formed by the continuation of undivided trunk of retromandibular vein. The facial vein and posterior auricular vein were the tributaries of external jugular vein. The sound anatomical knowledge of variations of the veins of head and neck is essential to the success of surgical procedures. The embryological evaluation of the above anomaly was done and compared with the available literature which showed that the observed variation was rare.