Jugulodigastric node

At a glance

English

Jugulodigastric node

Latin (TA2)

Nodus jugulodigastricus

System

Lymphatic

Region

Neck

Side

Paired, left and right

About the jugulodigastric node

The jugulodigastric node is the best known member of the upper deep cervical chain. It lies just below and behind the angle of the mandible, where the internal jugular vein is crossed by the posterior belly of digastric. It is usually one large node, sometimes a small cluster, and sits under cover of the front edge of sternocleidomastoid. In adults it is commonly around a centimetre and a half long, one of the largest nodes in the neck, and it tends to become smaller in later life.

Its size reflects how much it handles. The internal jugular vein runs down beside it inside the carotid sheath, with the carotid arteries and vagus nerve close by, and the accessory nerve passes near its upper end. Many lymph vessels from the face, mouth and throat converge on this point before continuing down the chain.

It receives lymph from the palatine tonsil above all, which is why it is also called the tonsillar node, and from the back of the tongue, the pharynx, the mouth and the face, either directly or after passing through the submandibular and parotid nodes. Its outflow descends along the internal jugular vein to the lower deep cervical nodes and the jugular lymph trunk.

In neck surgery it belongs to level II. It is the node that swells and becomes tender in tonsillitis and in sore throats, and when enlarged with a pus-coated throat it suggests a streptococcal infection. It is also a common first site of spread from cancers of the tonsil, the back of the tongue and the pharynx, and an enlarged, painless node here in an adult needs investigation.

Course and drainage

Begins at

Afferent vessels from the palatine tonsil, the posterior tongue, the pharynx and the oral cavity, and outflow from the submandibular and parotid nodes.

Drains into

Efferent vessels descend along the internal jugular vein to the inferior deep cervical nodes and the jugular trunk.

Drains

The main filter for the tonsil and throat. It enlarges in tonsillitis and streptococcal sore throat, and is a common first site of spread from cancers of the tonsil, tongue base and pharynx.