Abstract
Determining the branching pattern of the popliteal artery (PA) is an important step in planning some radiological and surgical procedures. The aim of this study was to investigate the course and morphology of the terminal branches of the popliteal artery using multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) angiography, and also to determine possible role gender in branching pattern. Three-hundred forty lower extremity MDCT angiography images for 170 patients (118 M, 52 F), who were between 20–80 years old, were examined. Popliteal artery branching types were grouped as percentage incidences. TPT diameters and lengths in Type IA extremities were compared based on gender and right or left side. Anterior tibial artery (ATA), posterior tibial artery (PTA) and peroneal artery dominance rates were calculated. 5000 times measurement data was mixed so that the cascade mean filter values were calculated for the right and left TPT length each time. It was observed that Type IA was the most common branching pattern (89.4%). The variational pattern incidence was 10.6% and the most common category was Type III (4.1%). The most common pattern was Type IB (3.2%). Variational pattern was 2 times more prevalent in females when compared to the males. The mean TPT diameter was 4.5 mm (2.7–7.3 mm) and there was no difference based on gender and the right-left side. The most common dominant artery for the right and left legs was PTA in both genders. The cut-off values calculated for the right and left TPT independent of gender were 31.30 ± 2.40 and 28.36 ± 2.58, respectively. Three new subtypes were identified as short (S ≤ 2 cm), standard (N = 2–4 cm) and long (L ≥ 4 cm) in Type IA, since it is in a wide variational range although it is a typical PA branching pattern.
Highlights
The popliteal artery is a lower extremity artery that is a continuation of superficial femoral artery
Arterial variations are determined with multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) angiography, a non-invasive technique
Variational patterns were observed in 11.9% of the males and 23% of the females
Summary
The popliteal artery is a lower extremity artery that is a continuation of superficial femoral artery. The popliteal artery branching pattern may exhibit variations based on embryological abnormalities These variations were first indicated and classified in angiographic and postmortem studies in the literature[3]. Popliteal artery exhibits bifurcation at the lower border of popliteus muscle in the classical anatomical description. Since this cannot be determined angiographically, tibial plateau can be used as a reference point[2]. CT angiography provides evaluation almost similar to normal anatomic structures with standard axial cross-sections, as well as three-dimensional reconstruction. This imaging technique is important in the patient follow-up, especially after a procedure, as well as the patient’s compatibility for endovascular or surgical treatment. The aim of the present study was to investigate the course and morphology of the terminal branches of the popliteal artery using MDCT angiography to minimize complications during interventional procedures, and to determine if there was a difference between the genders
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