The Axillary Artery, Its Branches and Tips for Studying It

       As we all know, the flow of blood through the body plays a vital role. Without it, our cells would not receive oxygen and nourishment, metabolic waste would not be cleared out and our health would suffer because of it. When a patient is examined, it's necessary to have a good clinical understanding of the venous and arterial pathways. In cases of ischemia and hypoxia, it's important to know what tissues could suffer and what concerns need to be addressed. 

       Today, we'll take a closer look at the axillary artery, the pathways it branches off to, the areas served and a few good study ideas to learn, remember and understand this area. The axillary artery is a continuation of the subclavian artery and has three sections before becoming the brachial artery (after it passes the inferior border of teres major). The three sections can be broken down based on what branches off of them.

The Axillary Artery and its branches. The labels are in small font, try to pick them out and label them yourself! Picture from Gray's Anatomy. 

Section	Branches	Areas Supplied
One	Superior Thoracic Artery	Upper part of thoracic cavity
Two	Thoracoacromial Artery	Pectoral and deltoid regions
	Lateral Thoracic Artery	Lateral structures of thorax
Three	Subscapular Artery	Subscapular region
	Anterior Circumflex Humeral Artery	Proximal end of humerus
	Posterior Circumflex Humeral Artery	Proximal end of humerus

    Using this table is a start to good studying for remembering this area, but let me recommend a few more that I have found helpful. Visualizing yourself as a red blood cell and imagining your pathway through the body helps: starting in the aorta, moving through the subclavian artery, continuing down the axillary artery and then taking a sharp turn into the subscapular artery to supply the subscapularis as it is hard at work swimming or throwing a baseball.
     Secondly, use mnemonics! Med students have come up with all sorts of interesting mnemonics for remembering different sorts of information (the funniest in my mind have been for the cranial nerves). The axillary artery is no different: Screw The Lawyer Save A Patient moves you through sections one to three in descending order and the arteries that branch off. 
     There are a few more that you can find here but I encourage you to come up with some of your own. Be creative, be funny and maybe a little rude- those seem to stick the best. We'd love to hear some feedback from you with some of your favourites, so if you have any that come to mind jot them down in the comments section.
      And if you are looking for more ways to learn about or become more proficient with anatomy, physical assessment, physical medicine or clinical conditions take a look at our products, thanks!