Blood Supply to The Spinal Cord
Blood Supply of Spinal Cord
The spinal cord is supplied by
1. Anterior spinal artery
2. Posterior spinal artery
3. Spinal branch from the 1st intercostal artery (Radicular Artery)
4. Spinal branch from the 11th intercostal artery (Radicular Artery)
5. High take off - A branch from Iliac artery L IV, L V (Radicular Artery)
6. Other vessels
Anterior spinal artery
The anterior spinal artery is the larger
It is a midline artery - lies on the anterior median fissure
It is formed at the foramen magnum by union of two arteries one from each vertebral artery
Supplies the spinal cord anterior part
The posterior spinal arteries
One or two on each side - derived from the vertebral artery (or from inferior cerebellar artery) at the level of foramen magnum
Both the anterior and the posterior spinal arteries descend from the level of the foramen magnum
Spinal branches from the 1st and 11th intercostal arteries - large
They pass along the nerve roots to the spinal cord and reinforce the anterior and posterior spinal arteries
Spinal artery at T1
supplies the cord only downwards
Spinal artery at T11
supplies the cord both above and below (radicularis magna)
Other Arteries
from vertebrals
from deep & ascending cervicals
frm intercostals
from lumbars
from lateral sacrals
All these arteries anstomose under the pia mater in the periphery of the cord
Abnormal situation
e.g. high take off - the iliac artery branch supplies the lower thoracolumbar region of the cord entering by way of the intervertebral foramen in the vicinity of L4-5
Spinal Veins
Spinal veins form plexuses anteriorly and posteriorly
All of them drain into :
vertebral veins in the neck,
azygos veins in the thorax,
lumbar veins in the lumbar region,
lateral sacral veins in the sacral region
through intervertebral foramina
