UNILATERAL SPLIT ORIGIN OF THE SUBSCAPULAR ARTERY A CASE REPORT

On routine dissection of a 60 year old female cadaver, an unusual unilateral variation in the branching pattern of the right axillary artery was noticed. The initial trunk portion of the subscapular artery was absent. The two major divisions of the subscapular artery namely the thoracodorsal artery and the circumflex scapular artery arose directly from the axillary artery. The thoracodorsal artery arose from the second part of the axillary artery and the circumflex scapular artery arose from the third part of the axillary artery. Rest of the branches of axillary artery were normal in their branching pattern. The left axillary artery was normal in its course and branching pattern. Knowledge about such variations of axillary artery helps to avoid inadvertent complications during surgeries of pectoral region and axilla like radical mastectomy, reparative surgeries of axillary artery after trauma, etc. Prior idea about the variant anatomy of axillary artery and its branches aids in clear interpretation of angiographic images. Moreover, the subscapular arterial tree is considered an important donor site for microvascular reconstruction procedures. Early detection of such variations will aid in the planning of effective microvascular grafting procedure.