Anatomy of the lymphatics of the neck

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Introduction0:00–0:30

Whenever we go to the doctor's office with what we think is a respiratory infection, they will often feel for nodes in the neck.
What they are feeling for are the lymph nodes in our neck, which drain the head and neck and become enlarged when there's an infection.
Enlarged lymph nodes can also indicate other clinical conditions, such as cancers. So by understanding the anatomy of the lymph nodes in the neck and their drainage, this can help with clinical diagnosis.

Superficial lymph nodes0:30–2:27

So, the lymphatics of the head and neck can be divided into two groups, a superficial group of nodes, and a vertical group of deep lymph nodes.
So the superficial lymph nodes receive lymph from the scalp, face, and neck. There are 8 groups of superficial lymph nodes which extend from underneath the chin to the posterior aspect of the head, and they are represented by the occipital, mastoid, preauricular, parotid, submental, submandibular, buccal, and superficial cervical lymph nodes.
The occipital lymph nodes are located in the back of the head at the lateral border of the trapezius muscle and collect lymph from the occipital area of the scalp.
The mastoid lymph nodes are also called retroauricular lymph nodes, and they're located posterior to the ear. Specifically, they lie on the insertion of the SCM into the mastoid process, and they collect lymph from the posterior neck, upper ear, and lateral scalp.
The preauricular lymph nodes are located anterior to the oracle of the ear and collect lymph from the superficial areas of the face and temporal region.
The parotid lymph nodes are located superficial to the parotid gland and collect lymph from the lateral side of the face and scalp.
The submental lymph nodes are located in the submental triangle, superficial to the mylohyoid muscle and collect lymph from the chin and lower lip.
The submandibular lymph nodes are located below the mandible in the submandibular triangle and collect lymph from the face inferior to the eye and from the mouth.
The buccal lymph nodes collect lymph from the nose and cheek. The superficial cervical lymph nodes are located close to the external and anterior jugular veins and collect lymph from the superficial surfaces of the anterior neck.

Deep lymph nodes2:27–3:23

These superficial groups of lymph nodes all drain into the deep group of lymph nodes, which are organized into vertical chains that are located close to the internal jugular veins, mostly under the sternocleidomastoid muscles.
The deep cervical lymph nodes include many lymph nodes such as the prelaryngeal, pretracheal, paratracheal. Retropharyngeal.
Jugulodigastric or tonsillar, and juguloomohyoid. The jugulodigastric nodes are part of the superior deep cervical nodes, and the juguloomohyoid node is part of the inferior deep cervical nodes.
The deep cervical nodes eventually drain to the left venous angle via the thoracic duct, or the right venous angle via the right lymphatic duct.

Lymphatic drainage of cervical viscera3:23–4:30

Finally, let's take a quick look at the lymphatic drainage of the cervical viscera. The lymphatic vessels of the thyroid gland drain initially into the prelaryngeal, pretracheal, and paratracheal lymph nodes.
Then the prelaryngeal nodes drain into the superior deep cervical lymph nodes, and the pretracheal and paratracheal nodes drain into the inferior deep cervical lymph nodes.
The lymphatic vessels of the parathyroid glands drain with those of the thyroid gland into the paratracheal lymph nodes and the deep cervical lymph nodes.
The lymphatic vessels of the larynx are divided into two groups. Superior to the vocal folds, lymphatic vessels drain into the superior deep cervical lymph nodes, and inferior to the vocal folds, lymph drains into the pretracheal or paratracheal lymph nodes, and then into the inferior deep cervical lymph nodes.
The lymphatic vessels of the cervical esophagus drain into the paratracheal lymph nodes and the inferior deep cervical lymph nodes.

Quiz4:30–4:41

All right, before we hit the recap, let's take a break and try to identify the superficial and the deep cervical lymph nodes.

Review4:41–5:23

All right, there's a quick recap. The lymphatics of the head and neck are divided into two groups, a superficial group of lymph nodes and a vertical group of deep lymph nodes.
The superficial lymph nodes extend from underneath the chin to the posterior aspect of the head, and these are the occipital, mastoid, preauricular, parotid, submental, submandibular, buccal, and superficial cervical lymph nodes to drain the scalp, face, and superficial structures of the neck.
The deep cervical lymph nodes receive lymph from the superficial group of nodes and are organized into a vertical chain along the internal jugular vein.