Reiner A, Kasser R
Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Tennessee-Memphis 38163, USA.
Anat Rec. 1996 Feb;244(2):265-8. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0185(199602)244:2<265::AID-AR14>3.0.CO;2-N.
The origin of the dorsal scapular artery to the rhomboid muscles in humans has been the subject of uncertainty. The present study sought to clarify which of its two most common sources (the transverse cervical artery or the subclavian artery) is the major source of the dorsal scapular artery.
Gross anatomical dissection was used to visualize the origin and course of the dorsal scapular artery in human cadavers.
We found that the dorsal scapular artery typically arises from either of two main sources: the subclavian artery (about 75% of all sides) or the transverse cervical artery (about 25% of all sides). Subclavian origins were approximately equally divided between its second and third part. Other origins for the dorsal scapular artery were negligible in frequency. Those dorsal scapular arteries that arose from the subclavian artery passed between the upper and middle or middle and lower trunks of the brachial plexus to course to the rhomboid muscles. In the case of transverse cervical artery origin, the dorsal scapular artery arose as a branch that passed deep to the levator scapulae muscle before coursing to the rhomboid muscles. No noteworthy differences were observed between males and females.
These results strongly support the simple view, which does not appear widely accepted, that the subclavian artery is the most common source of the dorsal scapular artery to the rhomboid muscles and the transverse cervical artery a major but secondary source.
人类肩胛背动脉至菱形肌的起源一直存在不确定性。本研究旨在明确其两个最常见来源（颈横动脉或锁骨下动脉）中哪一个是肩胛背动脉的主要来源。
采用大体解剖方法观察人类尸体中肩胛背动脉的起源和走行。
我们发现肩胛背动脉通常起源于两个主要来源之一：锁骨下动脉（约占所有侧的75%）或颈横动脉（约占所有侧的25%）。锁骨下动脉起源在其第二和第三部分之间大致相等。肩胛背动脉的其他起源频率可忽略不计。那些起源于锁骨下动脉的肩胛背动脉在臂丛神经的上干和中干之间或中干和下干之间穿过，然后走向菱形肌。在颈横动脉起源的情况下，肩胛背动脉作为一个分支出现，在走向菱形肌之前穿过肩胛提肌深部。男性和女性之间未观察到显著差异。
这些结果有力地支持了一个未被广泛接受的简单观点，即锁骨下动脉是肩胛背动脉至菱形肌的最常见来源，而颈横动脉是主要但次要的来源。
