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Bilateral vertebral arteries entering the C4 foramen transversarium with the left vertebral artery originating from the aortic arch
Affiliations- Department of Pathology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, United States
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, United States
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Abstract
Vertebral arteries (VAs) serve as major blood vessels to the central nervous system.
VAs typically arise from the subclavian arteries and ascend separately within the
transverse foramina of the cervical vertebrae (C6-C1) before entering the skull at
the foramen magnum and joining at the base of the pons to form the basilar artery
of the vertebrobasilar circulation. Therefore, variations in the origin and anatomic
course of the VAs have implications for invasive medical procedures involving
the superior thoracic/cervical regions or the cervical vertebrae. The current case
report describes variation in the entry point of both VAs and the site of origin of
the left vertebral artery. The variation was revealed during routine dissection of
a 72-year-old female cadaver. It was found that the left vertebral artery originated
directly from the aortic arch to abnormally enter the transverse foramen of C4
instead of the transverse foramen of C6. The right vertebral artery arose as usual
from the right subclavian artery. However, the right vertebral artery also directly
entered the transverse foramen of C4 instead of the transverse foramen of C6.
Abstract
Vertebral arteries (VAs) serve as major blood vessels to the central nervous system.
VAs typically arise from the subclavian arteries and ascend separately within the
transverse foramina of the cervical vertebrae (C6-C1) before entering the skull at
the foramen magnum and joining at the base of the pons to form the basilar artery
of the vertebrobasilar circulation. Therefore, variations in the origin and anatomic
course of the VAs have implications for invasive medical procedures involving
the superior thoracic/cervical regions or the cervical vertebrae. The current case
report describes variation in the entry point of both VAs and the site of origin of
the left vertebral artery. The variation was revealed during routine dissection of
a 72-year-old female cadaver. It was found that the left vertebral artery originated
directly from the aortic arch to abnormally enter the transverse foramen of C4
instead of the transverse foramen of C6. The right vertebral artery arose as usual
from the right subclavian artery. However, the right vertebral artery also directly
entered the transverse foramen of C4 instead of the transverse foramen of C6.
Keywords
vertebral artery, aortic arch, cervical vertebrae, transverse foramen
About this articleTitle
Bilateral vertebral arteries entering the C4 foramen transversarium with the left vertebral artery originating from the aortic arch
Journal
Issue
Article type
Case report
Pages
721-725
Published online
2022-06-10
Page views
1074
Article views/downloads
700
DOI
Pubmed
Bibliographic record
Folia Morphol 2023;82(3):721-725.
Keywords
vertebral artery
aortic arch
cervical vertebrae
transverse foramen
Authors
C. J. Dean
K. Labagnara
A. K. Lee
D. J. Yun
Z. Dong
P. L. Mishall
A. Pinkas
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