One of the numerous blood vessels in the human head, the sublingual artery originates in the lingual artery. It provides blood supply to the floor of the mouth as well as to the salivary glands. Isolated injuries to the sublingual artery can occur, among other things, during the piercing of a tongue piercing, although the extent of this complication depends on the specific damage.
What is the sublingual artery?
The sublingual artery is an artery that runs through in the human head through the area of the lower jaw. It branches off from the lingual artery, which is also known as the lingual artery and to which the Latin name of the sublingual artery refers: It is located below (“sub-“) the larger artery and beneath the tongue (“lingua”). In addition to the sublingual artery, the lingual artery has three other branches, which are the profunda linguae artery, the rami dorsales linguae, and the ramus suprahyoideus. The sublingual artery, in turn, arises from the external carotid artery, which is one of the most important blood vessels of the head and neck.
Anatomy and structure
The sublingual artery occurs as a branch of the lingual artery. At the hyoglossus muscle, a tongue muscle, the sublingual artery branches off from the larger blood vessel. From there, it passes the mylohyoid muscle to the salivary gland (sublingual gland), which is located in the area of the mandible under the tongue. Subsequently, the sublingual arteries of the right and left sides converge. The wall of the sublingual artery, like all arteries, consists of three layers. The tunica externa or tunica adventitia embodies the outermost layer and, in larger arteries, also contains the vasa vasorum, which are responsible for supplying the vessel walls. Beneath the tunica externa is the tunica media, which contains collagen and elastic fibers as well as the muscles of the artery. These ring-shaped muscles serve to control blood flow and are capable of constricting or dilating the vessel. Finally, the tunica intima forms the innermost layer of the artery. Towards the interior, it is lined with a layer of endothelial cells. They can act on coagulation processes and serve as a blood-tissue barrier, allowing a small amount of exchange between substances. In addition, endothelial cells participate in blood pressure and vascular tone regulation.
Function and Tasks
The function of the sublingual artery is to supply blood to the salivary glands in the mandible, the gums, and the floor of the mouth. In the floor of the mouth, muscles rely on energy, oxygen, and other nutrients from the sublingual artery. The floor of the mouth muscles are also known as the upper hyoid or suprahyoid muscles and are part of the striated skeletal musculature. It consists of the digastric muscle, geniohyoid muscle, mylohyoid muscle and stylohyoid muscle. These muscles are involved in swallowing on the one hand and opening the jaw on the other, with the individual muscles working together in a coordinated manner. In addition, the sublingual artery also supplies the oral mucosa, which is also part of the floor of the mouth. The various cells of the epithelium perform different tasks and vary in terms of their structure: the oral mucosa at the floor of the mouth belongs to the lining oral mucosa and is unkeratinized. Its structural properties give this layer a high degree of elasticity, which the oral mucosa of the floor of the mouth requires due to the chewing movements and the associated mechanical stress. Receptors for sensitive perception are also located in the oral mucosa to receive pain stimuli, temperature and pressure sensations and transmit them via the peripheral nervous system. Cornified plates are not found in the lining oral mucosa, but in the masticatory oral mucosa, while cells of the specialized oral mucosa participate in gustatory sensation. Oxygen-rich blood from the sublingual artery is vital for the cells: if the blood supply is interrupted for a long time, the cells may therefore die. Among other things, they need the oxygen to produce chemically bound energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). In aerobic respiration, the body oxidizes glucose with the help of oxygen to obtain ATP. The energy carrier is then available to the cell for numerous metabolic processes.
Diseases
Because the sublingual artery is a small blood vessel, isolated injuries without involvement of other structures of the head are rare. However, a lesion involving only the sublingual artery is possible when a tongue piercing occurs. Often, the tongue swells immediately after the piercing. Other complications of piercing a tongue involve damage to other blood vessels as well as nerve pathways, gums and teeth. Problems from swallowing, biting, inflammation, infection from inadequate sterilization, and allergies are also possible. Severe complications are generally considered rare; however, in isolated cases, injury to the tongue blood vessels can result in severe bleeding with significant blood loss. Hemorrhage from the sublingual artery may affect muscles that rely on the blood vessel for supply. These muscles are the suprahyoid muscles, which are active in swallowing and opening the jaw. Tongue carcinomas surrounding the sublingual artery may affect the blood vessel. A carcinoma of the tongue is a neoplasm that is usually malignant and is a form of cancer. Several factors influence the development of tongue carcinoma; it is clustered with alcohol, nicotine, and oral drug use and can develop in various locations on the tongue.