Infragenicular part of popliteal artery
Pars infragenicularis arteriae poplitea
- Synonym: Infragenicular popliteal artery; Below-knee popliteal artery; Subgenicular popliteal artery
Definition
The subgenicular part of the popliteal artery (P3; Infragenicular popliteal artery; Below-knee popliteal artery) refers to the segment of the popliteal artery that lies below the knee joint, from the tibiofemoral joint line to the origin of the anterior tibial artery.
The primary branches of the subgenicular part of the popliteal artery include the anterior tibial artery and the tibial-peroneal trunk, which further bifurcates into the posterior tibial artery and the peroneal (fibular) artery.[1-2]
The popliteal artery is anatomically classified into three levels:
P1, the supragenicular popliteal artery (from the exit from Hunter’s canal to the patella level)
P2, the retrogenicular popliteal artery (from the upper edge of the patella to the joint line)
P3, the subgenicular popliteal artery (from the joint line to the origin of the anterior tibial artery (ATA))
References
1.The Evidence-Based Surgical Anatomy of the Popliteal Artery and the Variations in Its Branching Patterns.Tomaszewski KA, Popieluszko P, Graves MJ, et al.Journal of Vascular Surgery. 2017;65(2):521-529.e6. doi:10.1016/j.jvs.2016.01.043.
2.Variations in Terminal Branches of the Popliteal Artery: Cadaveric Study.Olewnik Ł, Łabętowicz P, Podgórski M, et al.Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy : SRA. 2019;41(12):1473-1482. doi:10.1007/s00276-019-02262-3.
4. Vascular SurgeryA Clinical Guide to Decision-makingBook • 202
