Article Figures & Data
Figures
- Fig 1.
Photographs of specimens of a cadaveric aorta with intact thoracolumbar spine.
A, Anterior view shows the whole aorta, which is situated on the left side of the spinal column at the upper thoracic levels and descends medially to be situated anterior to the lumbar column, a little to the left of the midline. This specimen has an abdominal aortic aneurysm.
B–D, Anterior (B), right lateral (C), and left lateral (D) views of the thoracic aorta show the course of the posterior intercostal arteries (PIAs). In the lateral views, white and black numbers indicate the levels of the posterior intercostal arteries and thoracic vertebrae, respectively. The arteries at the upper thoracic levels, originating below the corresponding feeding levels, run upward, whereas those of the middle to lower thoracic levels originate just below the feeding levels and ascend for a short distance. On the right side, the initial segment runs straight after branching from the aorta, whereas that on the left exhibits angulation just distal to the origin.
E–G, Anterior (E), right lateral (F), and left lateral (G) views of the lumbar aorta show the lumbar arteries (LAs) originating at the levels of the corresponding vertebrae. The first two lumbar arteries run upward, whereas the last two run almost horizontally. The first lumbar artery on the left is absent in this specimen. IVC indicates inferior vena cava.
H, Left anterior view of the lower thoracic level after vertebrectomy shows the common origin of the 10th and 11th posterior inercostal arteries (PIAs). The major trunks can be identified.
- Fig 2.
Photographs of specimens of a cadaveric aorta.
A, Left anterior oblique view of the inner lumen of the thoracic aorta shows the locations of the orifices (arrows) of the posterior intercostal arteries. The longitudinal distances between adjacent orifices are shorter in the upper level, and orifices on the left at this level are situated in a higher position than those on the right side, depending on the curve of the aortic arch.
B and C, Pins are placed in the initial segment of the segmental arteries at the thoracic (B) and lumbar (C) levels to show the direction of each vessel. Differences in direction of the initial segment between the spinal levels can be seen, with a medial course where the aorta is lying to the left of the spinal column, but the course is dorsolateral where the aorta is anterior to the spinal column.
- Fig 3.
Schematic drawing shows the locations of the orifices of the segmental arteries in the aorta relative to the spine (left) and the directions (arrows) of the initial segment in axial sections at each level (right). The directions of the initial segment are nearly parallel to the coronal plane in the upper thoracic (Th) region and are dorsolateral in the lumbar (L) region.
- Fig 4.
A and B, Selective arteriograms of the posterior intercostal arteries (PIA) on the right (A) and left (B) show arteries arising on the right side of the thoracic aorta, and the left one runs posterior to the aorta. Arrowheads indicate the orifices of the arteries; arrows, the lateral rim of the aorta. Th indicates thoracic vertebra. C and D, Lumbar arteriograms at the upper (C) and lower (D) levels show that the first two lumbar arteries (LAs) arise just below the corresponding vertebrae, whereas the last two arteries arise in the middle regions of the vertebrae. Th indicates thoracic vertebra; L, lumbar vertebra.
Tables
- TABLE 1:
Horizontal distances between orifices of the segmental arteries in the lumen of the aorta from five cadaveric specimens
Artery and Level Distance (mm) Posterior intercostal 3 9.10–10.23 (9.83) 4 11.00–12.03 (11.17) 5 13.56–20.90 (17.22) 6 12.64–18.08 (15.34) 7 10.25–12.18 (11.20) 8 10.40–10.55 (10.47) 9 10.98–13.00 (11.73) 10 8.18–14.42 (11.25) 11 8.90–11.24 (10.14) Subcostal 6.66–7.88 (6.72) Lumbar 1 7.38–7.81 (7.56) 2 5.39–8.20 (6.74) 3 7.58–10.44 (8.96) 4 7.95–20.28 (14.12) Note.—Data are the range. Numbers in parentheses are the mean.
- TABLE 2:
Longitudinal distances between orifices of the segmental arteries in the lumen of the aorta from five cadaveric specimens
Artery and Level Distances (mm) Right Left Posterior intercostal 3–4 5.70–7.25 (6.45) 9.88–11.20 (10.66) 4–5 10.96–12.44 (11.84) 12.96–20.60 (16.75) 5–6 11.22–13.74 (12.43) 13.24–18.64 (15.84) 6–7 11.00–17.34 (14.07) 10.48–18.45 (14.43) 7–8 20.20–20.67 (20.33) 20.68–22.44 (21.50) 8–9 24.02–24.48 (24.23) 25.14–26.66 (25.84) 9–10 22.16–24.72 (23.38) 20.10–25.29 (22.70) 10–11 25.48–25.78 (25.52) 22.74–24.92 (23.00) 11–Subcostal 22.65–26.44 (23.84) 23.56–28.61 (27.27) Subcostal–lumbar 1 30.23–33.57 (32.44) 28.20–33.52 (30.79) Lumbar 1–2 25.96–30.20 (27.92) 23.12–32.38 (27.79) 2–3 25.94–26.90 (26.32) 26.48–31.08 (28.28) 3–4 15.87–30.44 (27.99) 27.36–31.30 (29.83) Note.—Data are the range. Numbers in parentheses are the mean.
