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Brachial artery: course in the arm, cubital fossa and division

Where does the brachial artery run?

Press lightly along the inner edge of your biceps. Can you feel a pulse? Beneath it, running from the shoulder to the elbow, is the brachial artery, which carries blood down the arm to the hand.

teamLabBody with the brachial artery (yellow) selected; the axillary artery above, the radial and ulnar arteries below the elbow
Screen from teamLabBody Pro, an anatomy app ›

It continues the axillary artery, taking its name at the lower border of the teres major, and runs down the inner arm close to the humerus. Just below the elbow, at the level of the neck of the radius, it divides into the radial artery on the thumb side and the ulnar artery on the little-finger side. The level of division varies; in some people it divides higher in the arm.

Companions in the arm

The artery follows the shallow groove along the medial border of the biceps brachii. The median nerve runs beside it, lateral to the artery at first, crossing in front of it in the mid-arm and lying medial to it near the elbow. Thin brachial veins accompany the artery, so artery, veins and nerve run as one bundle. Its main branch, the deep artery of the arm, runs back with the radial nerve around the humerus to supply the muscles at the back of the arm.

At the elbow

In the cubital fossa the artery lies just medial to the biceps tendon: from lateral to medial, tendon, artery, median nerve. The bicipital aponeurosis covers them; the median cubital vein runs in the skin above it, so this thin sheet separates the superficial vein from the deeper artery. Behind the artery lies the brachialis.

Name and terms

Brachial comes from the Latin bracchium, arm, the same root as brachialis and brachial plexus. Related terms: deep artery of arm (profunda brachii), radial artery, ulnar artery. The Latin is arteria brachialis.

See it in the app

Hidden along the inner edge of the biceps, the brachial artery shows only partly in muscle drawings, and where it changes name and divides is hard to see in one picture. In the 3D anatomy app teamLabBody you can show only the vessels and follow it from the armpit to below the elbow, then add the muscles to see its relation to the biceps and brachialis. Cross sections are available with the PREMIUM plan.

FAQ

Where does the brachial artery run?
From the axillary artery down the inner arm along the medial border of the biceps, then just medial to the biceps tendon at the front of the elbow.
Where does the brachial artery divide?
Just below the elbow, at the level of the neck of the radius, into the radial and ulnar arteries. The level varies between people.
What is its main branch?
The deep artery of the arm, which runs with the radial nerve around the back of the humerus.

Related articles

・Median cubital vein: the superficial vein above the bicipital aponeurosis

・Biceps brachii: the artery follows its medial border

・Brachialis: lies behind the artery at the elbow

・Radial nerve: runs with the deep artery of the arm

・Brachial plexus: source of the median nerve

・Anatomy by body system

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