STUDY OF PALMAR TYPE OF MEDIAN ARTERY AND ITS FATE

Background: The median artery is a transitory vessel that represents the arterial axis of the forearm during early embryonic life. When present, it appears mainly as two types: antebrachial and palmar. Context and purpose of the study: In the present study the objective was to investigate the occurrence and fate of palmar type of median artery. The study was conducted on 40 cadaveric upper extremities dissected in the department of Anatomy, Guru Gobind Singh Medical College, Faridkot, India. Results: In the present study, persistent median artery (palmar type) was seen in 2.5% of the limbs dissected. It was originating from the posterior aspect of the ulnar artery approximately 3.2 cm distal to the elbow joint. It pierced the median nerve (traversing from its medial to its lateral aspect) in the proximal third of the forearm. The artery then travelled lateral to the median nerve in rest of the forearm. Subsequently, it accompanied the median nerve into the palm passing deep to the flexor retinaculum. Finally, the artery terminated by completing the superficial palmar arch. In addition to the above described variant blood vessel, we also observed high division of median nerve into its medial and lateral branches. Clinical implications: When median artery is patent and reaches the hand, it forms the only arterial supply to the median nerve and damage to this artery could have serious effects. The aim of our study was to provide additional information about anomalous palmar type of median artery and its clinical implications.