Posterior cerebral artery

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The posterior cerebral arteries (PCA) are the terminal branches of the basilar artery and supply the occipital lobes and posteromedial temporal lobes.

Summary

origin: terminal branches of the basilar artery
course: from basilar towards occiput
main branches
supply: occipital lobes and posteromedial temporal lobes

Gross anatomy

The PCA is divided into four segments:

P1: from it origin at the termination of the basilar artery to posterior communicating artery (PCOM), within interpeduncular cistern
P2: from the PCOM around the mid-brain, divided into P2A (anterior) and P2P (posterior) sub-segments; P2A is within crural cistern which then bridges to the P2P segement in ambient cistern (thus ambient segment)
P3: quadrigeminal segment (segment with the quadrigeminal cistern)
P4: cortical segment (e.g. calcarine artery, within the calcarine fissure)

Branches

posterior communicating artery
choroidal branches (from P2)
- medial posterior choroidal arteries
- lateral posterior choroidal arteries
perforators
- anterior thalamoperforator (from PCOM)
- posterior thalamoperforator (from P1)
- thalamogeniculate perforator (from P2)
- peduncular perforator (from P2)
- circumflex (long and short)
cortical branches
- temporal branches
  - anterior temporal artery
  - posterior temporal artery
- lateral occipital artery
  - anterior inferior temporal artery
  - middle inferior temporal artery
  - posterior inferior temporal artery
- medial occipital artery
  - calcarine artery
  - parieto-occipital artery
- splenial artery

Variant anatomy

PCA fenestration: rare
fetal origin of PCA: unilateral incidence 10%, bilateral incidence 8%

~~-<a href="/articles/medial-posterior-choroidal-artery">medial</a> and <a href="/articles/lateral-posterior-choroidal-arteries">lateral posterior choroidal arteries</a>~~
+<a href="/articles/medial-posterior-choroidal-artery">medial</a> and <a title="lateral posterior choroidal arteries" href="/articles/lateral-posterior-choroidal-artery">lateral posterior choroidal arteries</a>
~~-<li><a href="/articles/lateral-posterior-choroidal-artery">lateral posterior choroidal arteries</a></li>~~

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