Healthcare

Biography

Biography: Soumya Guha

Abstract

Introduction: Cervical aortic arch is a rare anomaly where-in the ascending aorta arises normally from the left ventricle and extends in such a fashion that the aortic arch is situated high in the neck on either side. This anomaly should be suspected in any child exhibiting a pulsatile swelling in the neck. Case commentary: An 8 year old child presented with a pulsatile swelling on right side of neck since birth. CT angiography revealed right sided cervical aortic arch at C4-C5 level. The left common carotid artery arose from ascending aorta at D4 with the right external and internal carotid arteries originating separately from cervical arch. The right and left sub-clavian arteries arose from descending aorta at D1 and D4 respectively. Discussion: Although most patients with cervical aortic arch are asymptomatic, some have dysphagia from oesophageal compression and respiratory distress from tracheal compression. There are many anatomical variations in cervical aortic arch. What makes this case unique is that apart from the presence of right cervical aortic arch, 2 additional oddities in the form of abnormal origin of the left common carotid artery from ascending aorta and absence of right common carotid artery are noted. Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first report of right cervical aortic arch with this unique anatomy where there is an anomalous left common carotid artery and absent right common carotid artery.