Vol 67, No 3 (2008)
Review article
Published online: 2008-06-02
The ansa subclavia: a review of the literature
DOI: 10.5603/fm.v67i3.15967
Folia Morphol 2008;67(3):166-170.
Abstract
The ansa subclavia, subclavian loop, Vieussens’ ansa or Vieussens’ loop is
a nerve cord that connects the middle cervical and inferior cervical sympathetic
ganglia, forming a loop around the subclavian artery. The structure of the ansa
subclavia is evolutionarily conserved from rats, guinea pigs, the porcine species
and dogs to humans. A common application in physiological studies is to electrically
stimulate the ansa subclavia in animal models as a robust protocol to
modulate stimulatory cardiac sympathetic input. Despite a large number of
physiological studies utilizing the ansa subclavia, only very brief descriptions
have been devoted to it in standard anatomy texts. An extensive search found
only one report in the English language literature concerning the anatomy of
the ansa subclavia. The aim of this report, therefore, was to provide a comprehensive
review of the clinical anatomy of the ansa subclavia and to discuss its
potential physiological functions.
Keywords: ansa subclaviasubclavian loopVieussens’ ansaVieussens’ loop