Atrioventricular nodal artery

The atrioventricular (AV) nodal artery is a small artery supplying the atrioventricular septal area and the atrioventricular node.

Gross anatomy

The atrioventricular nodal artery usually courses through the inferior pyramidal space of the heart.

Origin

The origin of the atrioventricular nodal artery seems to vary slightly with respect to the study and seems to depend on coronary arterial dominance  ^1-4. It seems to originate most frequently from the posterolateral branch of the distal segment of the right coronary artery and less often from the posterior descending artery or the distal segment of the circumflex artery ^1-4.

Termination

The atrioventricular nodal artery usually terminates in the distal compact node near the central fibrous body of the membranous atrioventricular septum ².

Supply

The atrioventricular nodal artery is thought to mainly supply the proximal atrioventricular conduction axis and adjacent structures within the inferior pyramidal space ².

Variant anatomy

Rare origins of the atrioventricular nodal artery include the following ¹:

• dual origin from both right coronary artery and circumflex artery
• right superior septal artery
• Kugel artery

See also

• sinoatrial nodal artery
• atrioventricular septum