Common carotid artery

The Common carotid artery is the Carotid artery. It is used to supply blood to the head area and is also a center for measuring blood pressure. If the carotid artery is calcified, the risk of a stroke increases.

What is the common carotid artery?

The common carotid artery is the artery that supplies blood to the neck and head. This anatomical structure is also known as the carotid artery. At the fork of the carotid artery, the carotid artery divides into the internal carotid artery and the external carotid artery.

The latter is also known as the external carotid artery and supplies the upper cervical organs, such as the larynx. The internal carotid artery is also known as the internal carotid artery and primarily supplies the brain. Carotid translates into a deep sleep.

Pressure on the aorta shows comatose fainting as the main symptom, since the brain can no longer be supplied with blood. On the right side, the carotid artery arises from the so-called brachiocephalic trunk. On the left side it arises from the aortic arch.

Anatomy & structure

The carotid artery is one of the most powerful vessels in the human body. The sternocleidomastoid muscle is its upper limit. The trachea forms the lateral border. The carotid artery, together with nerves and other vessels, flows into the carotid vagina.

This is a covering made of connective tissue that is located in the neck area. The structures of the vagina carotis are also summarized as the vascular nerve cord. The common carotid artery runs from the entrance of the chest to the head. The throttle groove, a muscle groove in the neck area, serves as a running rail.

The carotid sinus is also known as the departure of the internal carotid artery, which is usually more pronounced than the external carotid artery. Above the carotid artery is a vein that carries the blood away from the face and head.

Function & tasks

The task of the common carotid artery is to supply blood to the inner and outer head area. Small branches branch off the inner carotid artery and supply blood to both the forehead and nose. The main supply area of ​​the internal carotid artery, however, remains the front part of the brain and the eye.

The external carotid artery, on the other hand, supplies the soft parts of the neck with arterial blood. This section of the carotid artery also supplies the bony skull. Blood carries oxygen. It is a medium that is used for breathing. The supply of the head and neck structures with oxygen is one of the functions of the artery. If this supply were not guaranteed, a cerebral infarction would occur. The common carotid artery is also a measurement center.

Pressoreceptors are located on the carotid sinus that control blood pressure and transmit the measurement information to the brain. The brain reacts to the data on blood pressure by regulating the fluid balance. An increase in blood pressure, for example, triggers increased urine excretion. As soon as the pressoreceptors report rising pressure in the arteries, the stimulating moments of the sympathetic system decrease. The heart rate decreases and the braking effects of the parasympathetic nervous system take hold. If the opposite is the case, it is the other way around.

In addition to blood pressure, the receptors at the junction of the carotid artery also permanently determine the composition of the blood. This measurement takes place via chemoreceptors and allows the carotid artery to monitor the content of oxygen, carbon dioxide and pH. These measurement data are also continuously transmitted to the brain. Depending on the transmitted measurement data, the brain increased or decreased the breathing rate. The carotid artery is thus primarily a center of circulatory regulation.

Diseases

Atherosclerotic vasoconstriction is one of the most common diseases of the carotid artery. Most of the time, this condition is due to nicotine consumption, high cholesterol, or high blood pressure. The fork into the inner and outer carotid artery is particularly often affected by this phenomenon. Such deposits in the carotid artery can express themselves early on in neurological symptoms such as hemiplegia.

Such a hemiplegia or numbness due to a carotid stenosis is usually understood as a harbinger of an impending stroke, because a stenosis of the carotid artery increases the risk of a stroke immensely. Surgical correction of the stenosis is essential in such cases. This correction can take place consciously with local anesthesia or under general anesthesia. Usually a minimal incision in the carotid artery is used to enter the bloodstream. The deposits are removed in this way.

If there is a narrowing, this narrowing can be countered with an expanding plastic part. In addition to the symptoms mentioned, the carotid artery can also be affected by a carotid dissection. This leads to bleeding into the vessel wall of the carotid artery. A blood clot can develop, which in the end leads to another stroke. Another danger arises when the carotid artery pressoreceptors are damaged or tumors press on the carotid artery. This creates pressure on the carotid sinus, which is level with the fork in the inner and outer carotid artery.

This is how the so-called carotid sinus syndrome occurs. The pulse and blood pressure can no longer be measured with this phenomenon. An acute cardiac arrest is triggered. In an acute circulatory collapse, loss of consciousness occurs. The pupils dilate greatly and the skin turns bluish or purple in color.