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Major arteries and their branches

1. Aorta comes off the left ventricle


a. Aortic valve has three cusps, right, left, and posterior
b. The left and right coronary arteries branch off the left and right cusps
i. Coronary arteries supply the heart with blood
1. Right coronary artery branches to
a. Right marginal branch
b. Posterior interventricular artery/posterior descending
artery (PDA)
c. Sinoatrial nodal artery
d. Atrioventricular nodal artery
2. Left coronary artery branches to
a. Anterior interventricular artery/left anterior
descending artery (LAD)
b. Circumflex branch
2. Aortic arch branches to
i. Brachiocephalic trunk branches to
1. Right common carotid artery
2. Right subclavian artery
ii. Left common carotid artery
iii. Left subclavian artery
3. Common carotid artery branches to
a. Bifurcates around the superior margin of the thyroid cartilage into the internal
carotid artery and external carotid artery
b. At the bifurcation, there is a carotid body, which is a chemoreceptor
c. Internal carotid artery is intracranial and has no branches in the neck; branches
to
i. Ophthalmic artery, which branches to
1. Lacrimal artery
2. Supraorbital artery
3. Posterior ethmoidal artery
4. Anterior ethmoidal artery
5. Internal palpebral artery
6. Supratrochlear artery
7. Dorsal nasal artery
8. Long posterior ciliary artery
9. Short posterior ciliary artery
10. Anterior ciliary artery
11. Central retinal artery, a terminal branch
d. External carotid artery branches to
i. At the bifurcation, it widens to form a carotid sinus, which is a
baroreceptor
ii. Anterior branches, which include
1. Superior thyroid artery, which branches to
a. Superior laryngeal artery
2. Lingual artery
3. Facial artery
a. Superior labial artery
b. Inferior labial artery
c. Angular artery
4. Maxillary artery branches to
a. Three parts
b. First or mandibular part
i. Inferior alveolar artery
ii. Middle meningeal artery
iii. Accessory meningeal artery
iv. Deep auricular artery
v. Anterior tympanic artery
c. Second or pterygoid part
i. Branches to pterygoid muscles
ii. Branches to masseter muscles
iii. Deep temporal branches
iv. Branch to buccinator muscle
d. Third or pterygopalatine part
i. Posterior superior alveolar artery
ii. Sphenopalatine artery
iii. Infraorbital artery
iv. Descending palatine artery
v. Pharyngeal branch
vi. Artery of pterygoid canal
5. Transverse facial artery
6. Superficial temporal artery
iii. Posterior branches, which include
1. Posterior auricular artery
2. Occipital artery
3. Ascending pharyngeal artery
4. Subclavian artery branches to
a. Three parts, with respect to the anterior scalene muscle
b. First part
i. Vertebral artery
ii. Internal thoracic artery
iii. Thyrocervical trunk branches to
1. Inferior thyroid artery
2. Ascending cervical artery
3. Transverse cervical artery
4. Suprascapular artery
c. Second part
i. Costocervical artery branches to
1. Deep cervical artery
2. Highest intercostal artery
d. Third part
i. Dorsal scapular artery
e. Subclavian artery travels down under the clavicle to the first rib, where it
changes name to axillary artery
5. Axillary artery branches to
i. Three parts, with respect to the pectoralis minor muscle
ii. First part
1. Superior thoracic artery
iii. Second part
1. Lateral thoracic artery
2. Thoracoacromial trunk branches to
a. Deltoid branch
b. Pectoral branch
c. Acromial branch
d. Clavicular branch
iv. Third part
1. Anterior circumflex humeral artery
2. Posterior circumflex humeral artery
3. Subscapular artery branches to
a. Circumflex scapular artery
b. Thoracodorsal artery
v. Axillary artery runs within the brachial plexus
vi. Axillary artery continues as the brachial artery once it passes the
inferior aspect of the teres major
b. Brachial artery branches to
i. Deep brachial artery/profunda brachii artery branches to
1. Radial collateral artery (anastomoses with radial recurrent
artery)
2. Middle collateral artery (anastomoses with interosseous
recurrent artery)
ii. Superior ulnar collateral artery (anastomoses with posterior ulnar
recurrent artery)
iii. Inferior ulnar collateral artery (anastomoses with anterior ulnar
recurrent artery)
iv. Bifurcates below the elbow to become the ulnar artery and radial artery
1. Ulnar artery branches to
a. Common interosseous artery branches to
i. Anterior interosseous artery
ii. Posterior interosseous artery branches to
1. Interosseous recurrent artery
(anastomoses with middle collateral
artery)
b. Anterior ulnar recurrent artery (anastomoses with
inferior ulnar collateral artery)
c. Posterior ulnar recurrent artery (anastomoses with
superior ulnar collateral artery)
d. Deep ulnar artery, which runs through deep ulnar/Guyon
canal
2. Radial artery branches to
a. Radial recurrent artery (anastomoses with radial
collateral artery)
b. Radial artery runs through the anatomical snuffbox in the
hand
3. The radial artery and ulnar artery continue into the hand as the
superficial palmar arch and deep palmar arch
a. Superficial palmar arch is mainly from the ulnar artery
b. Deep palmar arch is mainly from the radial artery
6. Thoracic aorta has both paired and unpaired branches
a. Paired branches
i. Inferior phrenic artery branches to
1. Superior suprarenal artery
ii. Middle suprarenal artery
iii. Renal artery branches to
1. Inferior suprarenal artery
iv. Gonadal artery
v. Lumbar artery
vi. Common iliac artery
b. Unpaired branches
i. Celiac trunk branches to
1. Left gastric artery
2. Common hepatic artery branches to
a. Proper hepatic artery branches to
i. Left hepatic artery
ii. Right hepatic artery branches to
1. Cystic artery
b. Right gastric artery
c. Gastroduodenal artery branches to
i. Right gastro-omental artery
ii. Superior pancreaticoduodenal artery branches to
1. Anterior superior pancreaticoduodenal
artery
2. Posterior superior pancreaticoduodenal
artery
3. Splenic artery branches to
a. Short gastric arteries
b. Left gastro-omental artery
ii. Superior mesenteric artery branches to
1. Inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery branches to
a. Anterior inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery
b. Posterior inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery
2. Middle colic artery
3. Right colic artery
4. Intestinal arteries
a. Jejunal arteries
b. Ileal arteries
5. Ileocolic artery
a. Appendicular artery
iii. Inferior mesenteric artery
1. Left colic artery
a. Ascending branch (anastomoses with middle colic
artery)
b. Descending branch (anastomoses with sigmoid artery)
2. Sigmoid arteries
3. Superior rectal artery
iv. Middle sacral artery
7. Common iliac artery branches to
a. Bifurcates at the level of L4/L5 into internal iliac artery and external iliac
artery
b. Internal iliac artery branches to
i. Anterior trunk branches to
1. Obturator artery
2. Inferior gluteal artery
3. Umbilical artery branches to
a. Superior vesical artery
4. Uterine artery
5. Vaginal artery or superior vesical artery
6. Middle rectal artery
7. Internal pudendal artery
ii. Posterior trunk branches to
1. Iliolumbar artery branches to
a. Iliac branch
b. Lumbar branch
2. Lateral sacral artery branches to
a. Superior branch
b. Inferior branch
3. Superior gluteal artery
c. External iliac artery
i. After it passes the inguinal ligament, it becomes the femoral artery
ii. Femoral artery branches to
1. Superficial epigastric artery (anastomoses with inferior
epigastric artery)
2. Superficial circumflex iliac artery
3. Superficial external pudendal artery
4. Deep external pudendal artery
5. Deep femoral artery/deep artery of the thigh
a. Medial circumflex femoral artery
b. Lateral circumflex femoral artery
i. Ascending branch
ii. Descending branch
c. Perforating arteries
iii. Femoral artery passes through the adductor hiatus and exits as the
popliteal artery
iv. Popliteal artery
1. Anterior tibial artery
2. Posterior tibial artery
3. Genicular arteries
a. Superior medial genicular artery
b. Superior lateral genicular artery
c. Inferior medial genicular artery
d. Inferior lateral genicular artery
v. Anterior tibial artery travels down the anterior part of the leg, then
travels through the opening in the interosseous membrane and becomes
dorsalis pedis artery/dorsal artery of foot
vi. Posterior tibial artery gives off the fibular artery and then continues
into the foot as the medial plantar artery and lateral plantar artery
d. Arteries of the foot
i. Anterior tibial artery
1. Dorsalis pedis artery/dorsal artery of foot
a. Deep plantar artery
b. Arcuate artery
i. Second to fourth metatarsal arteries
1. Second to fourth dorsal digital arteries
c. Lateral tarsal artery
d. First dorsal metatarsal artery
i. First dorsal digital arteries
ii. Posterior tibial artery
1. Fibular artery
2. Medial plantar artery
3. Lateral plantar artery
iii. Deep plantar arch is formed from the deep plantar artery and lateral
plantar artery
1. Perforating branches
2. Plantar metatarsal arteries
a. Common plantar digital arteries
b. Proper plantar digital arteries

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