Common carotid artery.

Common carotid artery, a. carotis communis (cara – plunge into sleep), develops from the ventral aorta over the 3rd to 4th aortic arches; on the right, it departs from truncus brachiocephalicus, on the left, independently from the aortic arch. The common carotid arteries are directed up the sides of the trachea and esophagus. The right common carotid artery is shorter than the left, since the latter consists of two sections: the thoracic (from the aortic arch to the left sternoclavicular joint) and the cervical, the right only from the cervical. A carotis communis passes into the trigonum caroticum and at the level of the upper edge of the thyroid cartilage or the body of the hyoid bone is divided into its final a. carotis externa et a. carotis interna (bifurcation). The common carotid artery is pressed to stop bleeding to the tuberculum caroticum VI of the cervical vertebra at the level of the lower edge of the cricoid cartilage. Sometimes, the external and internal carotid arteries do not depart from the common trunk, but independently from the aorta, which reflects the nature of their development. From the trunk a. carotis communis all over the small branches for the surrounding vessels and nerves – vasa vasorum and vasa nervorum, which can play a role in the development of collateral circulation around the neck.