Right gastric artery

The right gastric artery is a nonhepatic branch of the hepatic arteries that supplies the lesser curvature of the stomach.

Gross Anatomy

Course

The right gastric artery usually branches from one of the hepatic arteries (common, proper, or left hepatic). It is the most common nonhepatic branch of the proper hepatic artery or its distal branches . It runs along the lesser curvature of the stomach between the two layers of the lesser omentum (hepatogastric ligament) and anastomoses end on with the left gastric artery.

Branches

The right gastric artery supplies the lesser curvature of the stomach. Its branches come off at right angles, in contrast to branches from vagal nerve trunks, which comes off obliquely.

Relations

Veins of the same name accompany the arteries.

Variant anatomy

The right gastric artery has variable origins :

• proximal branches of hepatic trunk (80%)
  • common hepatic artery (9-20%)
  • proper hepatic artery (43-53%) (most common)
  • gastroduodenal artery (3-26%)
• distal branches (20%)
  • left hepatic artery (15-41%)
  • right hepatic artery (2-4%)

The left and right gastric artery can be double as run parallel along the lesser curvature of the stomach.