The jugular veins are major blood vessels in the neck responsible for draining deoxygenated blood from the head and neck back to the heart. There are two main types: the internal jugular vein and the external jugular vein. The internal jugular vein is the larger of the two and runs alongside the carotid artery and vagus nerve within the carotid sheath. It originates at the base of the skull, collects blood from the brain, face, and neck, and descends down the neck to join the subclavian vein, ev