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Brachial veins: the deep veins beside the brachial artery

Where do the brachial veins run?

Most people picture the bluish veins at the inner elbow when they think of arm veins, but blood from the arm also returns by a second, deep route between the muscles, alongside the arteries. In the upper arm these are the brachial veins.

teamLabBody with the brachial vein (yellow) selected, running beside the red brachial artery, separate from the blue cephalic and basilic veins
Screen from teamLabBody Pro, an anatomy app ›

In the view above the brachial vein is yellow and the red line beside it is the brachial artery. The two blue veins are the superficial veins under the skin: the cephalic laterally and the basilic medially. The brachial veins lie too deep to be seen or felt.

Two veins beside the artery

There are usually two brachial veins, one on each side of the brachial artery, linked by cross branches like the rungs of a ladder. Veins that accompany an artery like this are called venae comitantes; most deep veins of the forearm and leg run as two veins with one artery. teamLabBody shows the brachial veins as a single structure. In some people the two merge partway, and the number and level of union vary.

Beginning and end

They begin just below the elbow, where the radial and ulnar veins from the deep forearm unite, at about the level where the artery divides. Near the armpit the basilic vein, having dived deep in the mid-arm, joins them to form the axillary vein, which continues as the subclavian vein. At the elbow a perforating branch from the median cubital vein also links the superficial and deep systems.

Name and terms

Brachial veins is plural because there are usually two. Venae comitantes is Latin for accompanying veins. Related terms: axillary vein, radial veins, ulnar veins. The Latin is venae brachiales.

See it in the app

Running almost on top of the artery, the brachial veins are easy to miss in drawings. In the 3D anatomy app teamLabBody you can show only the vessels, select the brachial veins, and see how they pair with the brachial artery and differ in position from the superficial veins; rotate to the side to see the depth difference. Cross sections are available with the PREMIUM plan.

FAQ

Where do the brachial veins run?
Deep in the inner arm alongside the brachial artery, from the elbow to near the armpit, where they join the basilic vein to form the axillary vein.
How many brachial veins are there?
Usually two, one on each side of the brachial artery; in some people they merge into one partway.
How do they differ from the cephalic and basilic veins?
The brachial veins are deep veins beside the artery; the cephalic and basilic veins are superficial veins under the skin.

Related articles

・Brachial artery: the artery they accompany

・Cephalic and basilic veins: the superficial veins of the arm

・Median cubital vein: links the superficial veins at the elbow

・Median antebrachial vein: rises up the middle of the forearm

・Anatomy by body system

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