Aortic arch
Arcus aortae
CardiovascularBlood vesselsThorax
- What it is
- Curves backwards and to the left from the level of the sternal angle, arching over the pulmonary trunk bifurcation and the left main bronchus to reach the left side of T4. It gives off the brachiocephalic trunk, left common carotid and left subclavian arteries.
- Function
- Distributes blood to the head, neck and upper limbs and turns the flow downward into the descending aorta.
- Size
- ~4.5 cm long, ~2.5 cm diameter; its top lies ~2.5 cm below the jugular notch.
- Clinical note
- The ligamentum arteriosum (remnant of the fetal ductus arteriosus) tethers its underside to the left pulmonary artery; the left recurrent laryngeal nerve hooks under it, so an arch aneurysm can cause hoarseness.