Eur J Anat, 15 (2): 117-120 (2011)

Abnormal originating of vertebral artery in the superior mediastinum: A case report

Parvin-Dokht Bayat¹, Ali Ghanbari², Sepideh Esmaeili³, Katayon Esmaeili⁴

¹Department of Anatomy, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran, ²Fertility and Infertility Research Center, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran, ³Student Research Committee, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran, ⁴Nursing Department, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

ABSTRACT This study reports the anomalous origin of the left vertebral artery from the beginning of the subclavian artery at the superior mediastinum with no other variation in the pattern of the great vessels of the aortic arch. Indeed, the length of the prevertebral segment (first part) of the left vertebral artery was longer than that of right vertebral artery.

Keywords: Embryology, Iran, Prevertebral segment, Variations, Vertebral Artery