Posterior ethmoidal artery
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Please Take Over This Page and Apply to be Editor-In-Chief for this topic: There can be one or more than one Editor-In-Chief. You may also apply to be an Associate Editor-In-Chief of one of the subtopics below. Please mail us [2] to indicate your interest in serving either as an Editor-In-Chief of the entire topic or as an Associate Editor-In-Chief for a subtopic. Please be sure to attach your CV and or biographical sketch.
The posterior ethmoidal artery, smaller than the anterior ethmoidal artery, branches off from the ophthalmic artery when it reaches the medial wall of the orbit. It passes between the upper border of the medial rectus muscle and superior oblique muscle to pass through the posterior ethmoidal canal, to supply posterior ethmoidal cells, and, entering the cranium, gives off a meningeal branch to the dura mater, and nasal branches which descend into the nasal cavity through apertures in the cribriform plate, anastomosing with branches of the sphenopalatine.
This artery supplies the posterior ethmoidal air sinuses, dura of the anterior cranial fossa, and the upper part of the nasal mucosa.