Inferior tympanic artery

Small branch of the ascending pharyngeal artery

Inferior tympanic artery
Superficial dissection of the right side of the neck, showing the carotid and subclavian arteries
Details
Precursor	aortic arch 2
Source	Ascending pharyngeal artery
Identifiers
Latin	arteria tympanica inferior
TA98	A12.2.05.013
TA2	4381
FMA	49506
Anatomical terminology [edit on Wikidata]

The inferior tympanic artery is a small branch of the ascending pharyngeal artery which passes through the tympanic canaliculus alongside the tympanic branch of glossopharyngeal nerve (CN IX) to reach and provide arterial supply to the medial wall of the tympanic cavity^[1] where it forms anastomoses with the other tympanic arteries.^{[citation needed]}

Clinical significance

In the case of a missing or underdeveloped cervical ICA, the Inferior tympanic artery can provide collateral ICA circulation by reversing flow of the caroticotympanic artery (embryologic hyoid artery). This can result in pulsatile tinnitus. The resulting aberrant carotid artery can mimic neoplasm on CT.^{[citation needed]}

References

This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 557 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

^ Standring, Susan (2020). Gray's Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice (42th ed.). New York. pp. 585–586. ISBN 978-0-7020-7707-4. OCLC 1201341621.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

Arteries of the head and neck

cervical branches (ascending palatine, tonsillar, submental, glandular)
facial branches (inferior labial
superior labial / nasal septum
lateral nasal
angular)

1st part / mandibular	anterior tympanic deep auricular middle meningeal (superior tympanic, petrosal) accessory meningeal inferior alveolar
2nd part / pterygoid	to muscles of mastication (deep temporal, pterygoid, masseteric) buccal
3rd part / pterygopalatine	posterior superior alveolar infraorbital (anterior superior alveolar) descending palatine (greater palatine, lesser palatine) artery of the pterygoid canal sphenopalatine (posterior septal branches, posterior lateral nasal) pharyngeal

ICA

cervical	carotid sinus
petrous	Vidian caroticotympanic
cavernous/ ophthalmic	orbital group:anterior ethmoidal posterior ethmoidal lacrimal (lateral palpebral) medial palpebral terminal (supraorbital, supratrochlear, dorsal nasal) ocular group: central retinal ciliary (short posterior, long posterior, anterior) Circulus arteriosus major hypophysial (superior, inferior)
brain	Circle of Willis ACA (anterior communicating, Recurrent artery of Heubner, Orbitofrontal artery) MCA (anterolateral central, Prefrontal artery, Superior terminal branch, Inferior terminal branch, Anterior temporal branch) posterior communicating anterior choroidal

ScA

vertebral artery

meningeal
spinal (posterior, anterior)
basilar: pontine
labyrinthine
cerebellar (AICA, SCA, PICA)
cerebral (PCA)

thyrocervical trunk

inferior thyroid	inferior laryngeal tracheal esophageal ascending cervical pharyngeal glandular branches
transverse cervical	superficial branch deep branch / dorsal scapular scapular anastomosis
suprascapular	acromial branch scapular anastomosis