The Thyroidea Ima Artery Arising from the Aortic Arch: A Rare Anatomical Variation.

A 73-year-old man underwent computed tomography (CT) angiography assessment of the head and neck vasculature. An incidental note of the thyroidea ima artery arising from the aortic arch was made. Presence of thyroidea ima artery may have clinical importance prior to neck surgeries and minimally invasive interventions.

Dual origin of the left vertebral artery: a rare anatomic variation.

Duplication of the vertebral artery is a very rare vascular variant. We describe a case of a duplicated left vertebral artery. Computed tomography (CT) angiography examination of the head and neck vessels of a 63-year-old man with a history of imbalance was undertaken. A duplicated left vertebral artery was incidentally noted. The medial limb directly originated from the arcus aorta between the left common carotid artery and the left subclavian artery. The lateral limb originated from the proximal left subclavian artery as the first branch and entered the transverse foramen of the C6 vertebra as usual. Prior to neck procedures requiring the anterior cervical approach and carotid endarterectomy, the awareness and diagnosis of the duplicated vertebral artery are important due to the potential risk of inadvertent vertebral artery injury. Therefore, this variation should be taken into account while evaluating cross-sectional imaging studies.

Right-sided aortic arch with isolation of the left innominate artery and hypoplasia of the left internal carotid artery.

PURPOSE: Here, we report a case of the right-sided aortic arch with isolation of the left innominate artery and hypoplasia of the left internal carotid artery. METHODS: A 42-year-old male patient underwent a whole-body computed tomography angiography (CTA) examination upon the clinical suspicion of vasculitis. RESULTS: CTA revealed a right-sided aortic arch with the isolation of the left innominate artery and hypoplasia of the left internal carotid artery. CONCLUSION: The right-sided aortic arch, with the isolation of the left innominate artery, is a scarce vascular variation that may occur with other cardiovascular anomalies such as ventricular septal defect. It can be asymptomatic or can present with symptoms of subclavian steal syndrome. Although its association with the agenesis of the left internal carotid artery has been reported, its association with the hypoplasia of the left internal carotid artery has not been reported previously to the best of our knowledge.

A blind-ending branch of celiac artery: a persistent embryologic vascular remnant?

The celiac artery classically divides into three major branches, but it may have variations in branching pattern. Here we report a case of celiac artery having a blind-ending branch in a 54-year-old man who underwent computed tomography of the abdomen before the kidney transplantation surgery. Preprocedural assessment of celiac artery variations is critical for surgical and angiographic procedures involving the upper abdomen.

Type 4 retro-aortic left renal vein with an aneurysm.

Type 4 retro-aortic left renal vein (RLRV) and renal vein aneurysms are rare entities which may have clinical and surgical implications. Here we present computed tomography (CT) angiography images of a case of retro-aortic left renal vein draining into the left common iliac vein with a venous aneurysm.

The combined intrathyroidal course of the brachiocephalic artery, right common carotid artery and right subclavian artery.

PURPOSE: We present an extremely rare vascular variant in which the brachiocephalic artery, right common carotid artery, and right subclavian artery course through the right lobe of the thyroid gland. METHODS: A 54-year-old woman underwent a coronary computed tomography (CT) angiography examination with the suspicion of infective endocarditis. RESULTS: Unexpectedly, the distal brachiocephalic artery, the proximal right common carotid artery, and right subclavian artery had a course through the right lobe of the thyroid gland. Otherwise, the arcus aorta branching pattern was normal. CONCLUSION: The supraaortic major branches seldom have intrathyroidal course. The intrathyroidal course of the right common carotid artery was described previously only in one case. But, to our best knowledge, the combined intrathyroidal course of these three major vessels has not been previously reported. Although asymptomatic, such variations may complicate lower neck procedures involving thyroidectomies and thyroid biopsies if undetected and unreported. So, the awareness of this atypical course while reporting CT examinations is crucial prior to neck interventions.