The medial palpebral arteries (internal palpebral arteries) are

arteries An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pul ...

of the head that contribute arterial blood supply to the eyelids. They are derived from the

ophthalmic artery The ophthalmic artery (OA) is an artery of the head. It is the first branch of the internal carotid artery distal to the cavernous sinus. Branches of the ophthalmic artery supply all the structures in the orbit around the eye, as well as some st ...

; a single medial palpebral artery issues from the ophthalmic artery before splitting into a superior and an inferior medial palpebral artery, each supplying one eyelid.

Anatomy

Origin

A single medial palpebral artery issues from the ophthalmic artery before bifurcating into a superior and an inferior medial palpebral artery. The origin occurs near the

trochlea Trochlea (Latin for pulley) is a term in anatomy. It refers to a grooved structure reminiscent of a pulley's wheel. Related to joints Most commonly, trochleae bear the articular surface of saddle joint, saddle and other joints: * Trochlea of hume ...

of the

superior oblique muscle The superior oblique muscle, or obliquus oculi superior, is a fusiform muscle originating in the upper, medial side of the orbit (i.e. from beside the nose) which abducts, depresses and internally rotates the eye. It is the only extraocular musc ...

Course

The medial palpebral arteries leave the orbit to encircle the

eyelids An eyelid is a thin fold of skin that covers and protects an eye. The levator palpebrae superioris muscle retracts the eyelid, exposing the cornea to the outside, giving vision. This can be either voluntarily or involuntarily. The human eyel ...

near their free margins, forming a superior and an inferior arch, which lie between the

orbicularis oculi The orbicularis oculi is a muscle in the face that closes the eyelids. It arises from the nasal part of the frontal bone, from the frontal process of the maxilla in front of the lacrimal groove, and from the anterior surface and borders of a short ...

and the tarsi.

Anastomoses

The superior medial palpebral artery anastomoses (at lateral angle of the orbit) with the upper lateral palpebral artery, and the zygomaticoorbital branch of the temporal artery. The inferior medial palpebral artery anastomoses at the lateral angle of the orbit with the lower lateral palpebral artery, and with the

transverse facial artery The transverse facial artery is an artery that branches from the superficial temporal artery and runs across the face. Course The transverse facial artery is given off from the superficial temporal artery before that vessel leaves the parotid glan ...

, and at the medial part of the lid with a branch from the

angular artery The angular artery is an artery of the face. It is the terminal part of the facial artery. It ascends to the medial angle of the eye's Orbit (anatomy), orbit. It is accompanied by the angular vein. It ends by anastomosing with the dorsal nasal br ...

(from this last anastomoses a branch passes to the

nasolacrimal duct The nasolacrimal duct (also called the tear duct) carries tears from the lacrimal sac of the eye into the nasal cavity. The duct begins in the eye socket between the maxillary and lacrimal bones, from where it passes downwards and backwards. The ...

, ramifying in its

mucous membrane A mucous membrane or mucosa is a membrane that lines various cavities in the body of an organism and covers the surface of internal organs. It consists of one or more layers of epithelial cells overlying a layer of loose connective tissue. It is ...

as far as the

inferior meatus In anatomy, the term nasal meatus can refer to any of the three meatuses (passages) through the skulls nasal cavity: the superior meatus (''meatus nasi superior''), middle meatus (''meatus nasi medius''), and inferior meatus (''meatus nasi inferio ...

of the

nasal cavity The nasal cavity is a large, air-filled space above and behind the nose in the middle of the face. The nasal septum divides the cavity into two cavities, also known as fossae. Each cavity is the continuation of one of the two nostrils. The nasal c ...

Additional images

File:Gray515.png, Bloodvessels of the eyelids, front view.

References

{{Authority control Arteries of the head and neck