Median sacral artery
| Median sacral artery | |
|---|---|
 The abdominal aorta and its branches. (Middle sacral visible at center bottom.) | |
 The arteries of the pelvis. (Middle sacral labeled at upper right.) | |
| Details | |
| Source | abdominal aorta |
| Vein | Median sacral vein |
| Supplies | coccyx, lumbar vertebrae, sacrum |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | arteria sacralis mediana |
| TA | A12.2.12.008 |
| FMA | 14757 |
The median sacral artery (or middle sacral artery) is a small vessel that arises posterior to the abdominal aorta and superior to its bifurcation.
It descends in the middle line in front of the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebræ, the sacrum and coccyx, ending in the glomus coccygeum (coccygeal gland).
Minute branches pass from it, to the posterior surface of the rectum.
On the last lumbar vertebra it anastomoses with the lumbar branch of the iliolumbar artery; in front of the sacrum it anastomoses with the lateral sacral arteries, sending offshoots into the anterior sacral foramina.
It is crossed by the left common iliac vein and accompanied by a pair of venæ comitantes; these unite to form a single vessel that opens into the left common iliac vein.
The median sacral artery is morphologically the direct continuation of the abdominal aorta but is vestgial in man, but large in animals with tails such as the crocodile.
See also
Additional images
The iliac veins.
Scheme of the anastomosis of the veins of the rectum.
The relations of the viscera and large vessels of the abdomen.
Median sacral artery
Pelvic contents: male. Superior view. Deep dissection.
References
This article incorporates text in the public domain from the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)
External links
- Anatomy photo:40:11-0200 at the SUNY Downstate Medical Center - "Posterior Abdominal Wall: Branches of the Abdominal Aorta"
- pelvis at The Anatomy Lesson by Wesley Norman (Georgetown University) (pelvicarteries)
