The anatomical variations of the posterior circumflex humeral artery

Abstract

Background: Arteries have a very variable origin, diameter, path, correlation, branching and terminal pattern. An honorable mention is necessary for the individual anatomical variations of the axillary artery branches, because this is a spot of frequent vascular lesions that are the result of blunt weapon traumas, proximal humerus traumas and glenohumeral dislocations. Material and methods: The morphologic variability of the posterior circumflex humeral artery was studied on a male adult cadaver, on 10 angiographies and 9 ultrasonographies of the upper limb arteries which also constituted the study poll. The origin variations were identified in 3 cases. Results: In correlation with gender, and the body part that is taken into consideration, the posterior circumflex humeral artery morphological variations are found more often in the male gender, predominantly on the right upper limb. Conclusion: The posterior circumflex humeral artery has a wide range of anatomical variations. More frequently the anatomical variations are found on the right upper limbs of male gender. The obtained data will become useful in the approaches of the axillary artery during arteriographies and also in choosing the right surgical intervention tactic on this topographical region.