Microsurgical anatomy of the anterior communicating artery complex in adult Chinese heads

Abstract

Background The anterior communicating artery complex, which is composed of anterior cerebral artery (ACA), anterior communicating artery (ACoA), and recurrent artery of Heubner, accounts for the anterior half of the circle of Willis and is a favorite site of aneurysm formation; ACoA accounts for most of intracranial aneurysms. Few authors have studied the microanatomy of the ACA in detail using different specimens; none of these studies involve Chinese specimen. We have studied this area on adult Chinese brain with the aid of surgical microscope. Methods The anterior communicating artery complexes of 90 cerebral hemispheres from 45 formalin-fixed cadavers were dissected under microscope. Results The length and diameter of the recurrent artery and their perforating branches were measured. Their supplying areas, the adjacent structures, and their variations were also recorded. Conclusion The cerebral vessels of native people have many variations in structure. The result of this study is quite different from that of the foreign literatures. The microanatomy of cerebral vessels also provides important data in its morphology for neurosurgeons.