Medial retropharyngeal lymph nodes
Lymphonodi retropharyngei mediales
Definition
The medial retropharyngeal lymph nodes are placed against the pharyngeal muscles, medial to the stylohyoid muscle or its equivalent. They are present in all species and are usually large (except in humans).
In the horse, there are 20 to 35 of them, placed along the external carotid artery, between the pharynx, the guttural pouch and the angular bundle of the digastric muscle.
In cows and carnivores, it is single, sometimes double.
The medial retropharyngeal lymph nodes drain, together with the lateral retropharyngeal lymph nodes, all the deep planes of the head (including the pharynx, the base of the tongue, the tonsils, the caudal part of the nasal cavities) and the cranial part of the neck. In the horse, they drain the guttural pouches.
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