The lingual vein drains into which structure?

Correct answer: B. The internal jugular vein

• A. The external jugular vein drains the scalp and superficial face and descends over sternocleidomastoid to the subclavian vein.
• B. CORRECT. The LINGUAL VEIN drains directly into the INTERNAL JUGULAR VEIN, usually near the level of the greater horn of the hyoid, either alone or as part of a common trunk with the facial and superior thyroid veins (the thyrolinguofacial trunk).
• C. The facial vein drains the face and does itself end in the internal jugular, but the lingual vein's own termination is the internal jugular directly — and the deep lingual (ranine) veins do not drain through the facial vein.
• D. The pterygoid venous plexus lies in the infratemporal fossa around the lateral pterygoid, drains the maxillary region, and communicates with the cavernous sinus — this is the plexus at risk in a posterior superior alveolar block.

Note: Clinically the sublingual region is richly vascular and highly absorptive — the reason for sublingual nitroglycerin — and haemorrhage in the floor of the mouth, whether from an implant perforating the lingual plate or from surgery, can produce rapid airway-threatening swelling.