On the a. malaris of the goat (Capra hircus)

Detailed observations were made of the a. malaris in 25 adult goats by means of the acryl plastic injection method and the findings obtained were evaluated in comparison with those for other mammals. The malar artery arose from the superior wall of the infraorbital artery, lateral to the infraorbital nerve and superomedial to the maxillary tuber, independently or rarely in common with the superior alveolar artery. It first passed anterolaterally in the sulcus malaris on the superior surface of the lacrimal bulla and gave rise to the third palpebral branch independently or rarely in common with the inferior oblique muscular branch beneath the obliquus inferior muscle, and also the main and accessory inferior oblique and the maxillary sinus branches. The third palpebral branch gave off the periosteal, the conjunctive, the supero- and inferolateral branches. After the malar artery gave off the zygomatic branch on the orbital surface of the zygomatic bone, it passed anterosuperiorly up to the incisura malaris at the medial end of the infraorbital margin of the lacrimal bone and gave off the medial superior and inferior palpebral arteries or a common trunk between them. It continued to pass forwards as the nasal radical branch after giving off the infraorbital marginal branch and anastomosed with the nasal dorsal branch of the superficial temporal artery. The medial inferior palpebral artery formed the inferior palpebral arterial arch by anastomosing with the lateral inferior palpebral artery of the superficial temporal at the lateral canthus. The inferior palpebral marginal, the ocular orbicular muscular and the conjunctive branches diverged from the above arterial arch. The medial superior palpebral artery gave off the lacrimal canalicular and the nasolacrimal canal branches and anastomosed with the lateral superior palpebral artery or the frontal branch of the superficial temporal at the medial canthus. The characteristic features of the malar artery in the goat were thus the third palpebral branch occasionally diverging from the external ophthalmic artery of the maxillary artery, a main and several accessory inferior oblique muscular, the maxillary sinus branches and the zygomatic branches.