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Extremely long posterior communicating artery diagnosed by MR angiography: report of two cases

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Abstract

We report two cases of an extremely long left posterior communicating artery (PCoA) diagnosed by magnetic resonance (MR) angiography. The PCoA arose from the normal point of the supraclinoid internal carotid artery and fused with the posterior cerebral artery (PCA) at its posterior ambient segment, forming an extremely long PCoA and extremely long precommunicating segment of the PCA. To our knowledge, this is the first report of such variation. Careful observation of MR angiographic images is important for detecting rare arterial variations. To identify these anomalous arteries on MR angiography, partial maximum-intensity-projection images are useful.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Rosalyn Uhrig, M.A. for editorial assistance in the preparation of this manuscript.

Conflict of interest

We declare we have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Saitama Medical University International Medical Center, 1397-1 Yamane, Hidaka, Saitama, 350-1298, Japan

    Akira Uchino

  2. Neuroscience Center of Suzuki Neurosurgical Clinic, Kawagoe, Japan

    Chihiro Suzuki

  3. Social Medical Corporation KAN-ETSU, KAN-ETSU Hospital, Tsurugashima, Japan

    Masahiko Tanaka

Authors
  1. Akira Uchino
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  2. Chihiro Suzuki
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  3. Masahiko Tanaka
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Correspondence to Akira Uchino.

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Uchino, A., Suzuki, C. & Tanaka, M. Extremely long posterior communicating artery diagnosed by MR angiography: report of two cases. Surg Radiol Anat 37, 565–568 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-014-1413-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-014-1413-4

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