| Left gastric artery | |
|---|---|
 Theleft gastric artery and other branches of theceliac artery (stomachin situ). Left gastric artery identified near lesser curvature. | |
 Left gastric artery is at #2 -- the upper of the two arrows. | |
| Details | |
| Source | Celiac artery |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | arteria gastrica sinistra |
| TA98 | A12.2.12.013 |
| TA2 | 4212 |
| FMA | 14768 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
Inhuman anatomy, theleft gastric artery arises from theceliac artery and runs along[1] the superior portion of[citation needed] thelesser curvature of thestomach beforeanastomosing with theright gastric artery (which runs right to left[citation needed]). It also issuesesophageal branches[1] that supply loweresophagus and ascend through theesophageal hiatus to form anastomoses with theesophageal branches of thoracic part of aorta.[citation needed]
The LGA usually arises from (the superior aspect of) the coeliac trunk - sometimes as a terminal branch of a trifurcation, and more rarely as a side branch of the splenic artery or of common hepatic artery. Sometimes it originates directly from aorta or from arteria phrenica inferior.[2]
From thecrus of diaphragm, the LGA arches obliquely anterior-ward and to the left to reach the left curvature of the stomach just inferior to the gastric cardia (thus erecting thegastropancreatic (peritoneal) fold).[2]
Upon reaching the cardia, the LGA splits into two terminal branches - a ventral one and a dorsal one - which anastomose with corresponding terminal branches of theright gastric artery, together providing arterial supply to the lesser curvature of the stomach.[2]
Besides its terminal ventral branch and dorsal branch, the LGA yields multiple side branches: the left lateral hepatic artery, posterior esophageal artery, anterior esophagocardiotuberous artery, branches to lymph nodes, and omental branches.[2]
In terms of disease, the left gastric artery may be involved inpeptic ulcer disease: if an ulcer erodes through the stomachmucosa into a branch of the artery, this can cause massiveblood loss into thestomach, which may result in suchsymptoms ashematemesis ormelaena.
![Blood supply to the stomach: left and right gastric artery, left and right gastro-omental artery and short gastric artery.[3]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aStomach_blood_supply.svg)
