Common carotid artery deep cervical artery and the descending branch of the occipital artery; the vertebral artery takes the place of the internal carotid artery within the cranium. The right common carotid may rise above the level of the upper border of the sternoclavicular joint; this variation occurs in about 12 percent of cases. In other cases, the artery on the right side may arise as a separate branch from the arch of the aorta, or in conjunction with the left carotid. The left common carotid varies in its origin more than the right. In the majority of abnormal cases it arises with
Carotid body body is sent to the cardiorespiratory centers in the medulla oblongata via the afferent branches of the glossopharyngeal nerve. The afferent fibres of the aortic body chemoreceptors are relayed by the vagus nerve. These centers, in turn, regulate breathing and blood pressure, with hypoxia causing an increase in ventilation. A paraganglioma is a tumor that may involve the carotid body and is usually benign. Rarely, a malignant neuroblastoma may originate from the carotid body. Innervated by glossopharyngeal nerve (cranial nerve IX). Carotid body The carotid body ("carotid glomus" or "glomus caroticum") is a small cluster of chemoreceptors and supporting cells