Anat Cell Biol.  2012 Dec;45(4):285-287. 10.5115/acb.2012.45.4.285.

The inferior epigastric artery arising from the internal iliac artery via a common trunk with the obturator artery

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Anatomy, Samsung Biomedical Research Institute, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea. changoh@skku.edu
  • 2Department of Anatomy, Catholic Institute for Applied Anatomy, The Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
  • 3Division of Public Health, Department of Physical Therapy, Gangneung Youngdong College, Gangneung, Korea.

Abstract

We report a rare case of a left inferior epigastric artery arising from the internal iliac artery via a common trunk with the obturator artery in an 84-year-old female cadaver. A common trunk for the inferior epigastric and obturator arteries firstly originated from the left internal iliac artery, at 3.0 mm below the bifurcation of the left common iliac artery. This trunk ran straight between the left external iliac artery and left external iliac vein, and was finally divided into the left inferior epigastric and left obturator arteries just superior to the inguinal ligament.

Keyword

Inferior epigastric artery; Internal iliac artery; Obturator artery

MeSH Terms

Aged, 80 and over
Arteries
Cadaver
Epigastric Arteries
Female
Humans
Iliac Artery
Iliac Vein
Ligaments

Figure

  • Fig. 1 The inferior epigastric artery (IEA) arises as a common trunk (star) with the obturator artery (OA) from the internal iliac artery (IIA). This trunk runs straight between the external iliac artery (EIA) and vein (EIV), and then bifurcates as the inferior epigastric and obturator arteries, just superior to the inguinal ligament. CIA, common iliac artery; DCIA, deep circumflex iliac artery; FN, femoral nerve; IEV, inferior epigastric vein; LFCN, lateral femoral cutaneous nerve; ON, obturator nerve; OV, obturator vein; RAb, rectus abdominis muscle.


Reference

1. Moore KL, Dalley AF, Agur AM. Clinically oriented anatomy. 2010. 6th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
2. Bergman RA, Thompson SA, Afifi AK, Saadeh FA. Compendium of human anatomic variation: text, atlas and world literature. 1988. Blatimore: Urban & Schwarzenberg.
3. Adachi B. Das Arteriensystem der Japaner. Band I. 1928. Kyoto: Verlag der Kaiserlich-Japanischen Universtät zu Kyoto.
4. Ishizeki K, Sakakura Y, Iida S, Tachibana T, Nawa T. A rare case of the inferior epigastric artery originated from the obturator artery (author's transl). Kaibogaku Zasshi. 1982. 57:47–50.
5. Kawai K, Honma S, Koizumi M, Kodama K. Inferior epigastric artery arising from the obturator artery as a terminal branch of the internal iliac artery and consideration of its rare occurrence. Ann Anat. 2008. 190:541–548.
6. Lippert H, Pabst R. Arterial variations in man: classification and frequency. 1985. München: J.F. Bergmann.
7. Pick JW, Anson BJ, Ashley FL. The origin of the obturator artery: a study of 640 body-halves. Am J Anat. 1942. 70:317–343.
8. Bilgiç S, Sahin B. Rare arterial variation: a common trunk from the external iliac artery for the obturator, inferior epigastric and profunda femoris arteries. Surg Radiol Anat. 1997. 19:45–47.
9. Sañudo JR, Roig M, Rodriguez A, Ferreira B, Domenech JM. Rare origin of the obturator, inferior epigastric and medial circumflex femoral arteries from a common trunk. J Anat. 1993. 183(Pt 1):161–163.
10. Aydin ME, Kaya AH, Kopuz C, Demir MT, Corumlu U, Dagcinar A. Bilateral origin of superior cerebellar arteries from the posterior cerebral arteries, and clues to its embryologic basis. Anat Cell Biol. 2011. 44:164–167.
11. Bhanu PS, Sankar KD. Bilateral absence of musculocutaneous nerve with unusual branching pattern of lateral cord and median nerve of brachial plexus. Anat Cell Biol. 2012. 45:207–210.
12. Kim DI, Kim YS, Lee KS, Han SH. Study of the inferior epigastric artery using anatomical and radiologic method for flap surgery. Korean J Anat. 2009. 42:187–195.
13. Grinsell D, Saravolac V, Rozen WM, Whitaker IS. Pre-expanded bipedicled deep inferior epigastric artery perforator (DIEP) flap for paediatric lower limb reconstruction. J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg. 2012. 65:1603–1605.
Full Text Links
  • ACB
Actions
Cited
CITED
export Copy
Close
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
Similar articles
Copyright © 2024 by Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors. All rights reserved.     E-mail: koreamed@kamje.or.kr