Anatomy, Head and Neck, Sphenopalatine Artery

Excerpt

The sphenopalatine artery (SPA) is a well-known vessel to otolaryngologists, deemed the artery of epistaxis. Epistaxis is among the most common ear, nose, and throat related emergency, and roughly 60% of the population will experience epistaxis sometime during their life. Most epistaxis cases are anterior bleeds and occur at the Keisselbach's plexus. In the rare case of posterior epistaxis, the SPA or branch of the SPA is likely responsible. It presents a challenge when treating as the vessel is hard to visualize and presents with profound bleeding. The sphenopalatine artery predominantly branches into two major vessels, the septal artery, and posterior-lateral nasal artery, however numerous additional branches may be present along with a highly variable course within the nasal cavity. Knowledge of the anatomical variations of the sphenopalatine artery and the surrounding structures is crucial to controlling posterior epistaxis that is unresponsive to conservative measures.