The external carotid artery supplies the face, scalp, neck viscera, and oral cavity through its eight branches. It is distinguished from the ICA by: the ECA has branches, the ICA does not (until the skull). In carotid endarterectomy, the ECA origin must be included in the endarterectomy patch to prevent ECA stenosis producing retrograde thrombus propagation into the ICA.
| Origin | Common carotid artery bifurcation |
|---|
ECA ligation for haemorrhage control (in head and neck cancer surgery or epistaxis) is generally well tolerated due to extensive collateral circulation from the contralateral ECA, vertebral, and ophthalmic territories. Selective ECA branch embolisation targets tumour blood supply in hypervascular head and neck tumours (paragangliomas, angiofibromas) before surgical resection.
Selective ECA branch embolisation reducing intraoperative blood loss in paraganglioma and juvenile angiofibroma surgery.
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