Anomalous Origins of Ophthalmic Arteries on Three-Dimensional Time-of-Flight Magnetic Resonance Angiography and Their Clinical Importance

Abstract

Aim: The purpose of this paper was to evaluate rare cases of anomalous origins of the ophthalmic artery (OA) according to magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) findings. Methods: This retrospective study included 80 patients diagnosed with anomalous OA origins between March 2015 and July 2018 from a sample of 16,024 patients. The patients included 47 females and 33 males with a mean age of 38.16 years (range 18–62 years). Three-dimensional time-of-flight (3D-TOF) MRA was performed for all patients. Results: Eighty (0.5%) patients had anomalous OA origins. The most common type of OA origin anomaly was the right OA originating from the middle meningeal artery (0.17%). Twelve (0.07%) patients had OAs with an extradural origin. Conclusions: Anomalous origins of the OA are rare. 3D-TOF MRA is a noninvasive imaging method that can be applied for the diagnosis of OA anomalies. Some OA variations can have a protective effect against ocular complications in vaso-occlusive events. Therefore, it is critical to know the variant anatomy of OAs.