Uterine artery projection relative to anatomical bony landmarks in CT-angiographies.

PURPOSE

The aim was to find bony landmarks of the pelvis for the origins and routes of uterine arteries, hoping to improve speed and safety of embolization procedures (leiomyoma, post-partum bleedings…).

METHODS

We carried out a study based on the analysis of CT-angiographies in arterial phases of whole-body scans. Two measurements were done per artery, one from the origin of uterine arteries to a first perpendicular line passing through the lowest part of the sacroiliac joint, another one from the beginning of the parametrial segment from a second parallel line passing by the acetabular roof. Mean distances across all these measurements were calculated, as were potential associations with known variables such as anatomical variants, age, parity and any pelvic surgical history.

RESULTS

Two hundred uterine arteries were analyzed. Concerning the origin, 83.5% of uterine arteries were located approximately one centimeter around the first line defined above, with a mean distance of + 4.8 mm. Concerning parametrial segment beginning, 88% were located approximately one centimeter around the second line defined, with a mean distance of only + 3.9 mm above the acetabular roof. Some significant differences were observed in subgroups, notably with a small trend to higher arising of uterine arteries in patients who had at least one childbirth, and expectedly lower arising in distal anatomical variants.

CONCLUSION

Clear pelvic anatomic landmarks exist and could help the guidance of arteries catheterization, and therefore indirectly lead to faster embolization and optimize procedures safety.