Left colic artery
Sub-branch · Descending colon Splenic flexure
First branch of the IMA, running to the left retroperitoneally across the left ureter and gonadal vessels. Its ascending branch reaches the splenic flexure to meet the middle colic (marginal artery); its descending branch supplies the descending colon and joins the first sigmoid artery.
Traced from the start
- Abdominal aorta
- Inferior mesenteric artery
- Left colic artery
Detail
- Supplies
- Distal third of the transverse colon, splenic flexure, descending colon
- Anastomoses
- Ascending branch with the middle colic at Griffiths' point
- Relations
- Left ureter and gonadal vessels pass beneath it
When it goes wrong
IMA occlusion (atheroma, ligation at aortic surgery)
Descending colon depends on retrograde flow from the middle colic through the marginal artery; when that link is deficient the splenic flexure and descending colon become ischaemic
Left hemicolectomy
The left ureter lies beneath the left colic pedicle and must be identified before the vessels are ligated
Practise this structure
1 question in the bank tagged Large Bowel.