Palm of left hand, showing position of skin creases and bones, and surface markings for the volar arches. Only the proximalorigin parts of the proper palmar digital arteries are shown.
The proper palmar digital arteries travel along the sides of the phalanges (along the contiguous sides of the index, middle, ring, and little fingers), each artery lying just below (dorsal to) its corresponding digital nerve.
Proper palmar digital arteries anastomose freely in the subcutaneous tissue of the finger tips and by smaller branches near the interphalangeal joints. Dorsal branches supplied by the arteries anastomose with the dorsal digital arteries, and supply the soft parts on the back of the second and third phalanges, including the matrix of the fingernail.
↑ Palmar and volar may be used synonymously, but volar is less common.
↑ Thus called because they run alongside (collateral to) the finger bones.
↑ This is the official and international Latin term as defined by the Terminologia Anatomica (TA), but in English speaking countries and especially the US, proper palmar digital arteries is more commonly used.
↑ Again, palmar and volar may be used synonymously, but aa. digitales volares propriae does not occur in the TA, and can therefore be considered deprecated.
The median nerve is a nerve in humans and other animals in the upper limb. It is one of the five main nerves originating from the brachial plexus.
In human anatomy, the ulnar nerve is a nerve that runs near the ulna bone. The ulnar collateral ligament of elbow joint is in relation with the ulnar nerve. The nerve is the largest in the human body unprotected by muscle or bone, so injury is common. This nerve is directly connected to the little finger, and the adjacent half of the ring finger, innervating the palmar aspect of these fingers, including both front and back of the tips, perhaps as far back as the fingernail beds.
The upper limbs or upper extremities are the forelimbs of an upright-postured tetrapod vertebrate, extending from the scapulae and clavicles down to and including the digits, including all the musculatures and ligaments involved with the shoulder, elbow, wrist and knuckle joints. In humans, each upper limb is divided into the arm, forearm and hand, and is primarily used for climbing, lifting and manipulating objects.
In human anatomy, the radial artery is the main artery of the lateral aspect of the forearm.
The ulnar artery is the main blood vessel, with oxygenated blood, of the medial aspects of the forearm. It arises from the brachial artery and terminates in the superficial palmar arch, which joins with the superficial branch of the radial artery. It is palpable on the anterior and medial aspect of the wrist.
In human anatomy, the palmar or volar interossei are four muscles, one on the thumb that is occasionally missing, and three small, unipennate, central muscles in the hand that lie between the metacarpal bones and are attached to the index, ring, and little fingers. They are smaller than the dorsal interossei of the hand.
In human anatomy, the dorsal interossei (DI) are four muscles in the back of the hand that act to abduct (spread) the index, middle, and ring fingers away from hand's midline and assist in flexion at the metacarpophalangeal joints and extension at the interphalangeal joints of the index, middle and ring fingers.
The interphalangeal joints of the hand are the hinge joints between the phalanges of the fingers that provide flexion towards the palm of the hand.
The anterior interosseous artery is an artery in the forearm. It is a branch of the common interosseous artery.
The superficial palmar arch is formed predominantly by the ulnar artery, with a contribution from the superficial palmar branch of the radial artery. However, in some individuals the contribution from the radial artery might be absent, and instead anastomoses with either the princeps pollicis artery, the radialis indicis artery, or the median artery, the former two of which are branches from the radial artery.
The deep palmar arch is an arterial network found in the palm. It is usually primarily formed from the terminal part of the radial artery. The ulnar artery also contributes through an anastomosis. This is in contrast to the superficial palmar arch, which is formed predominantly by the ulnar artery.
The superficial branch of the radial nerve passes along the front of the radial side of the forearm to the commencement of its lower third. It is a sensory nerve.
Collateral circulation is the alternate circulation around a blocked artery or vein via another path, such as nearby minor vessels. It may occur via preexisting vascular redundancy, as in the circle of Willis in the brain, or it may occur via new branches formed between adjacent blood vessels (neovascularization), as in the eye after a retinal embolism or in the brain when an instance of arterial constriction occurs due to Moyamoya disease. Its formation may be related by pathological conditions such as high vascular resistance or ischaemia. It is occasionally also known as accessory circulation, auxiliary circulation, or secondary circulation. It has surgically created analogues in which shunts or anastomoses are constructed to bypass circulatory problems.
The radialis indicis artery is a branch of the radial artery that provides blood to the index finger.
Three common palmar digital arteries arise from the convexity of the superficial palmar arch and proceed distally on the second, third, and fourth lumbricales muscles.
In anatomy, arterial tree is used to refer to all arteries and/or the branching pattern of the arteries. This article regards the human arterial tree. Starting from the aorta:
In the palm of the hand the median nerve is covered by the skin and the palmar aponeurosis, and rests on the tendons of the flexor muscles. Immediately after emerging from under the transverse carpal ligament the median nerve becomes enlarged and flattened and splits into a smaller, lateral, and a larger, medial portion.
A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala are often described as having "hands" instead of paws on their front limbs. The raccoon is usually described as having "hands" though opposable thumbs are lacking.
The extrinsic extensor muscles of the hand are located in the back of the forearm and have long tendons connecting them to bones in the hand, where they exert their action. Extrinsic denotes their location outside the hand. Extensor denotes their action which is to extend, or open flat, joints in the hand. They include the extensor carpi radialis longus (ECRL), extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB), extensor digitorum (ED), extensor digiti minimi (EDM), extensor carpi ulnaris (ECU), abductor pollicis longus (APL), extensor pollicis brevis (EPB), extensor pollicis longus (EPL), and extensor indicis (EI).
Dorsal digital arteries arise from the bifurcation of dorsal metacarpal arteries. They travel along the sides and dorsal aspects of the phalanges of the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger. They communicate with the proper palmar digital arteries.
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Proper palmar digital arteries
Lateral aspect of finger, with artery labeled a proper volar digital artery.
