55 - The Median Artery: Bilateral Persistence in a Cadaveric Specimen - A Case Report

Poster Board Number: 55
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Co-authors:

Valeria Pauneto - San Juan Bautista School of Medicine; Mariana Travieso - San Juan Bautista School of Medicine; Jaime Arroyo - San Juan Bautista School of Medicine

Abstract Body : The median artery is of embryological importance because it irrigates the hand during the first 44 days or eight weeks of intrauterine life. The blood vessels proliferate in the limb bud mesoderm to form a vascular plexus. A component of this plexus is the axial artery in the forearm, which then becomes the anterior interosseous artery, and later is replaced by the median artery. The median artery is then replaced by the ulnar and radial artery and is called a persistent median artery (PMA) if it does not regress. During the dissection of the upper extremity of a male cadaver, we found a case of bilateral persistence of the median artery. The artery originates on both limbs from the common interosseous artery, runs along the median nerve, and passes through the carpal tunnel and anastomoses with the ulnar artery to form the superficial palmar arch. Two types of persistence of the median artery in adults, the palmar type and the antebrachial type, have been described. The palmar type is a long vessel that reaches the hand, and the antebrachial type is a short vessel that ends before reaching the wrist and hand region. Our case corresponds bilaterally to the palmar type. The trajectory of the PMA and its branches can lead to pathologies such as carpal tunnel syndrome, pronator teres syndrome, median nerve neuropathy, or the compression of the anterior interosseous nerve. The PMA should also be taken into consideration when harvesting the palmaris longus tendon. This case of bilateral persistence of the palmar type of the median artery provides detailed anatomical insights, highlighting its course in the forearm and palm along with its embryological and clinical significance.