Morphological and Topographical Features of the Radial Recurrent Artery and Its Possible Clinical Significance

Objective: The anatomy of the radial recurrent artery (RRA) is very important for interventional procedures. The aim of this study was to investigate the morphological and topographic anatomy of the RRA. Methods: The study was conducted on 20 human cadavers (14 males and 6 females, 40 upper limbs). The RRA was classified into 4 groups as follows according to the observed origin: RRA originated from the radial artery (RA) (Type A), the root of the RA (Type B), the brachial artery (BA) (Type C), and the ulnar artery (UA) (Type D). The relative positioning of the RRA in relation to the tendon of the biceps brachii muscle (TBB), in terms of the antero-posterior direction, was determined. The vertical distance of the origin point of the RRA to the intercondylar line and the diameters of this artery were determined. Morphometric evaluation was performed with a digital caliper. The obtained data were analyzed using SPSS version 21.00 software. Results: The artery most commonly originated from the RA (Type A 47.5%, 19 extremities). This was followed by RA root (Type B 32.5%, 13 extremities), BA (Type C 17.5%, 7 extremities), and UA (Type D 2.5%, 1 extremity). The RRAs coursed anteriorly to the TBB in 38 extremities (95%) and passed behind the tendon in 2 extremities (5%). The vertical distance of the origin point of the RRA to the intercondylar line was meanly 32.20 +/- 6.86 mm. The diameter of the artery at its origin point was meanly 2.57 +/- 0.58 mm and just after its first branch was meanly 2.05 +/- 0.48 mm. Our study documents a rare morphological variation of the RRA originating from the UA (Type D). Conclusion: While many of our findings align with previous studies, this research presents novel anatomical findings and elucidates the superficial course and topographical positioning of the RRA to estimate its origin point.