Summary
The bifurcation of the common femoral artery (CFA) into superficial and profunda femoris arteries (PFA) and the branching pattern of the PFA are subject to considerable normal anatomical variation. These variation patterns were assessed on normal lower limb angiograms of 94 adult patients. The main pattern (in 81% of patients) consisted of both medial and lateral circumflex arteries arising directly from a PFA situated lateral or posterolateral to the femoral artery. Previous studies of arterial variations in this region and the relevant embryology are reviewed. Relevance to angiographic procedures of the lower limb is discussed.
Résumé
La bifurcation de l'artère fémorale en a. profonde de la cuisse (a. fémorale profonde) (AFP) et en a. superficielle, et les branches collatérales de l'AFP, donnent lieu à d'importantes variations anatomiques. Ces différentes variations ont été étudiées sur des artériographies normales de membres inférieurs chez 94 patients adultes. Le mode principal de présentation (chez 81% des patients) consistait en une naissance directe des artères circonflexes médiale et latérale de l'AFP, laquelle était en situation latérale ou postéro-latérale par rapport à l'artère fémorale. Les études antérieures des variations artérielles de cette région, et son embryologie ont été rappelées. Les applications aux procédures angiographiques des membres inférieurs sont discutées.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ahovuo J, Lepantalo M, Kinnunen J, Edgren J, Linden H, Saarinen O (1990) How many projections are really needed in angiographic assessment of the femoral bifurcation? Röntgenblätter 43: 530–532
Beales JSM, Adcock FA, Frawley JS, Nathan BE, McLachlan MSF, Martin P (1971) The radiological assessment of disease of the profunda femoris artery. Br J Radiol 44: 854–859
Bloda E, Sierocinski W, Kling A (1982) Variation of the arteria profunda femoris in man. Folia Morphol 1: 123–131
Cazenave-Mahe JP, Ducasse P, Videau J (1980) Embryologie des gros troncs arteriels du membre pelvien de l'homme. Anat Clin 2: 351–359
Dacie JE, Tennant D (1990) A new approach to percutaneous transluminal angioplasty of profunda femoris origin stenosis. Cardiovasc Intervent Radiol 13: 6770
Dacie JE, Daniell SJN (1991) The value of percutaneous transluminal angioplasty of the profunda femoris artery in threatened limb loss and intermittent claudication. Clin Radiol 44: 311–316
de Beer PM (1965) The profunda femoris and circumflex femoral arteries in the South African Bantu-speaking Negro. S Afr J Med Sci 30: 1–10
Greebe J (1977) Congenital anomalies of the iliofemoral artery. J Cardiovasc Surg 18: 317–323
Gremigni D (1968) On the origin of some collateral arteries of the arteria femoralis. Z Anat Entwicklungsgesch 127: 42–54
Goscicka D, Gielecki J, Zietek Z (1990) Digital image analysis of variations in the origin of the deep femoral artery in human foetuses. Acta Morphol Hung 38: 95–107
Hawkins JS, Coryell LW, Miles SG, Giovannetti MJ, Siragusa RJ, Hawkins Jr IF (1988) Directional needle for antegrade guide wire placement with vertical arterial puncture. Radiology 168: 271–272
Hewitt RL, Ayettey AS, Akers DL, Yates RD (1996) New nomenclature for femoral vessels. J Vasc Surg 24: 906–907
Litterland JC, Ashleigh RJ (1996) Transvenous embolization of a traumatic arteriovenous fistula. Clin Radiol 51: 886–889
Lopez J-F, Magne J-L, Champetier J (1989) The femoral artery and flexion of the hip joint. Surg Radiol Anat 11: 275–281
Thomas HG, Woodham CH (1993) Use of a directional needle for antegrade guidewire placement when performing femoro-popliteal angioplasty. Clin Radiol 48: 278–279
Kadir S (1991) Arterial anatomy of the lower extremities. In: Kadir S (ed) Atlas of normal and variant angiographic anatomy. Saunders, Philadelphia, pp 123–125
Lippert H, Pabst R (1985) Arterial variations in man: Classification and frequency. Bergmann, Munich, pp 61
Puerta CV, Puente JR (1982) Variaciones en la distribucion de la arteria femoral profunda. Estudio de 105 preparaciones quirurgicas. Anales de Anatomia 31: 133–138
Saddekni S, Srur M, Cohn DJ, Rozenblit G, Wetter EB, Sos TA (1985) Antegrade catheterization of the superficial femoral artery. Radiology 157: 531–532
Senior HD (1924) The description of the larger direct or indirect muscular branches of the human femoral artery: A morphogenetic study. Am J Anat 33: 243–265
Teitelbaum GP, Joseph GJ, Matsumoto AH, Barth KH (1989) Double-guide-wire access through a single 6-F vascular sheath. Radiology 173: 871–873
Voboril R (1990) Note on variability of the arteries of the lower extremities in man. Folia Morphol (Praha) 38: 265–272
Zito AJ, Teitelbaum GP, Matsumoto AH, Barth KH (1990) The use of double guide-wires through a single vascular sheath for obtaining profunda femoris arterial access: Technical note. Cardiovasc Intervent Radiol 13: 113–114
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This study was conducted at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Massoud, T.F., Fletcher, E.W.L. Anatomical variants of the profunda femoris artery: An angiographic study. Surg Radiol Anat 19, 99–103 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01628133
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01628133