MICROSURGICAL ANATOMY OF THE ANTERIOR CHOROIDAL ARTERY

In this study, the authors present the results of 50 dissections of th e anterior choroidal a. in man. Fifty cerebral hemispheres were prepar ed with the classic techniques of preservation and vascular injection. An ectopic origin was observed in 4% of cases. The intracisternal seg ment of the anterior choroidal a. forms a neurovascular bundle with th e optic tract and basal v. Most of its intraparenchymatous branches ar ise from the cisternal segment, while branches supplying the optic tra ct, lateral geniculate body and thalamus arise from the intraplexual s egment. Constant anastomoses exist with the vertebrobasilar system, sp ecially the postero-lateral choroidal and posterior cerebral aa. We di scuss the importance of an adequate knowledge of the anatomy of the an terior choroidal a. and its relations in the surgical approach to arte rial aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations of the region.