Rare Pancreatic Arterial Variations: A Cadaveric Case Report

The dorsal surfaces of the pancreatic head and body receive a significant amount of blood supply from the dorsal pancreatic artery, whose common origins include the splenic artery, superior mesenteric artery, celiac trunk, and the common hepatic artery, with the most common being the splenic artery. In the majority of cases, the dorsal pancreatic artery is present in some form. In this case study, the dorsal aspect of the head and body of the pancreas is supplied by a large artery not commonly found in the literature, referred to here as the right posterior pancreatic artery (RPPA). The RPPA was found during routine cadaveric dissection in a medical school anatomy lab. Arising from the gastroduodenal artery, it traveled along the dorsal aspect of the head and body of the pancreas and terminated at the abdominal aorta, replacing dorsal pancreatic, large pancreatic, or short pancreatic arteries. The RPPA's location at the head of the pancreas, in conjunction with its size and a lack of additional blood flow from the dorsal, large, or short pancreatic arteries, is useful knowledge for surgical interventions involving the pancreas.