Dorsal pancreatic artery: incidence, morphometry, origin, course, branches

Abstract

The surgical anatomy of the dorsal pancreatic artery is of paramount importance in the work of a pancreatic surgeon, transplant surgeon, and oncologist. This artery supplies blood to the pancreatic neck region, the area where, in the vast majority of cases, pancreatodigestive anastomosis is performed. Material and methods. A systematic literature review was conducted using the PubMed, Embase, CyberLeninka, and GoogleScholar bibliographic databases. The following keywords and their combinations were used: «cranial trunk», «superior mesenteric artery», «splenic artery», «common hepatic artery», «dorsal pancreatic artery», «pancreatic body and tail arteries», «pancreatic isthmus blood supply», «pancreatic anatomical segment arteries», «anatomy», «variants», «arterial anastomoses» and «anomalies». Results and discussion. Frequency of dorsal pancreatic artery was 79–100 % according to the data of anatomical investigations; radiological ones – 64.4–100 %. Its main sources were the splenic artery – from 22.22 to 80 % according to anatomists, from 13.5 to 100 % according to radiologists; the cranial trunk – 3–33.3 and 8–27.75 % respectively; the superior mesenteric artery – 1.8–25 and 3.8 % respectively; the common hepatic artery – 12–24 % regardless of the research methods. The course of the dorsal pancreatic artery and its division into the terminal branches (prepancreatic and inferior pancreatic arteries) was characterized by relative constancy. Conclusions. This review summarizes world literature data devoted to the topographic anatomy of the splenic artery and its pancreatic branches involved in the blood supply of the body and tail of the pancreas. The search for dorsal pancreatic artery in anatomical and radiological material should start from the main trunk and the area of its division into terminal branches, and then move to its source.