Trifurcation of the right common carotid artery—Case report

Abstract

Trifurcation is rare anatomical variant of the common carotid artery (CCA) termination. Knowledge of such alteration may prevent from the unintentional complications and influence on the course of various invasive medical procedures carried in the neck region. The best way to assess anatomy of neck arteries is computed tomography angiography (CTA). In this article we present a case of 64-year old male patient, who was admitted to the department with a chronic headaches and dizziness. CTA revealed a trifurcation of the right common carotid artery into: internal carotid artery and two branches of external carotid artery. The aneurysm of the proximal part of Vertebral Artery was also observed and it was considered as a cause of the symptoms which should not be related to the anatomical variety of the CCA.

Keywords

• Carotid artery
• Trifurcation
• Common carotid artery
• Rare anatomical variant