Browse the corpus

The profunda brachii artery, also called the "deep brachial artery," is the first and largest branch of the brachial artery (see Image. Profunda Brachii Artery). This blood vessel bifurcates from the posterior portion of the brachial artery below the teres major's inferior border. It then traverses the triangular interval, entering the posterior compartment of the arm along with the radial nerve. Once in the posterior compartment, the profunda brachii artery gives off a branch that connects with the posterior circumflex humeral artery. The profunda brachii artery then continues inferiorly along the radial sulcus (aka radial groove), branching into the radial and middle collateral arteries at a point inferior to the latissimus dorsi. The radial collateral artery further divides into the anterior and posterior radial collateral arteries.[1][2] The anterior radial collateral artery anastomoses with the radial recurrent artery. The middle and posterior radial collateral arteries fuse with the recurrent interosseous artery. The profunda brachii is essential to upper extremity circulation because of its vast arterial connections. This article focuses on this important blood vessel.