Ulnar palmar digital artery
Arteria digitalis palmaris ulnaris
- Synonym: Ulnopalmar digital artery of the thumb
Definition
The ulnar palmar digital artery of the pollex (Ulnopalmar digital artery of the thumb, or UPDAT) is one of the four principal arteries supplying the thumb (pollex). It courses along the ulnar (medial) aspect of the palmar surface of the thumb, providing blood supply to that side of the digit.
Anatomical characteristics:
Prevalence: This artery is nearly constant, found in approximately 99.6% of specimens, making it the most consistently present of the four thumb arteries.
Origin: It most commonly arises from the first palmar metacarpal artery (Princeps pollicis artery) in about 63% of cases. Other sources include the first dorsal metacarpal artery (~21%) and the superficial palmar arch (~26%), whether complete or incomplete.
Course: It runs along the ulnar border of the thumb on its palmar side, providing arterial supply to the skin, subcutaneous tissue, and pulp of the ulnar half of the thumb.
Relationship to other thumb arteries: It is one of four arteries that typically supply the thumb — the other three being the radiopalmar digital artery (RPDAT, ~99.3%), the ulnodorsal digital artery (UDDAT, ~83.4%), and the radiodorsal digital artery (RDDAT, ~70.4%).
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