Vaginal artery
Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data
At the time the article was created Grace Florescu had no recorded disclosures.
View Grace Florescu's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Craig Hacking had no recorded disclosures.
View Craig Hacking's current disclosuresThe vaginal artery is a branch of the anterior division of the internal iliac artery, and should not to be mistaken with the vaginal branch of the uterine artery. It is often considered to be a homolog of the inferior vesical artery, which is present only in males.
Summary
- origin: anterior division of the internal iliac artery
- location: pelvis
- supply: lower part of the vagina, vestibular bulb, rectum, fundus of bladder
- branches: vaginal and inferior vesical branches
Gross anatomy
Origin
The vaginal artery originates from the anterior division of the internal iliac artery.
Branches
The vaginal artery gives vaginal and inferior vesical branches:
- vaginal branch descends to the vagina, supplies it and can anastomose with the vaginal branch of the uterine artery
- inferior vesical branch proceeds towards the fundus of the bladder
Supply
The vaginal artery supplies the lower portion of the vagina, the vestibular bulb, rectum and the fundus of the bladder. The upper part of the vagina is supplied by the uterine artery.
Quiz questions
References
- 1. Last's anatomy, regional and applied. Churchill Livingstone. ISBN:044304662X. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 2. Dalley AF, Agur AM. Clinically Oriented Anatomy, Sixth Edition. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN:1605476528. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
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