A STUDY OF VARIATION IN BRANCHING PATTERN OF AXILLARY ARTERY

Aim: To study variations in the branching pattern of axillary artery. Material and method: The study was conducted at R.N.T. Medical College, Udaipur (Rajasthan) on 60 Upper Limbs of 30 adult cadavers (20 males and 10 females) Results: During our study we have noticed anomalies in branching pattern in about 33% of cadavers. Some rare variations like absence of profunda brachii artery and its replacement by descending branches from posterior circumflex humeral artery, origin of profunda brachii artery from II part of axillary artery were also noticed during the study. Conclusions: Knowledge of variations is important especially for orthopaedic and vascular surgeons to avoid complications during various surgical procedures in axillary regions and during angiographies respectively. Various clinical implications of variations in branching pattern are discussed in this study.