| Hepatic artery proper | |
|---|---|
 Thehepatic artery proper branches from thecommon hepatic artery. | |
 Inferior surface of the liver. (Entrance for hepatic artery labeled at bottom center.) | |
| Details | |
| Source | Common hepatic artery |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | arteria hepatica propria |
| TA98 | A12.2.12.029 |
| TA2 | 4227 |
| FMA | 14772 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
Thehepatic artery proper (alsoproper hepatic artery) is the artery that supplies theliver andgallbladder. It raises from thecommon hepatic artery, a branch of theceliac artery.
The HAP accounts for 10% of hepatic blood flow and 30% of its oxygen supply, with the rest provided by theportal vein; this double blood supply makes the liver far more resilient to vascular disease than other major organs.[1]
The hepatic artery proper arises from the common hepatic artery and runs alongside theportal vein and thecommon bile duct to form theportal triad. A branch of the common hepatic artery – thegastroduodenal artery gives off the smallsupraduodenal artery to theduodenal bulb. Then theright gastric artery comes off and runs to the left along the lesser curvature of the stomach to meet theleft gastric artery, which is a branch of theceliac trunk. It subsequently bifurcates into the right and left hepatic arteries.
Of note, the right and left hepatic arteries may demonstratevariant anatomy. A misplaced right hepatic artery may arise from thesuperior mesenteric artery (SMA) and a misplaced left hepatic artery may arise from theleft gastric artery. Thecystic artery generally comes from the right hepatic artery.[2]
Other variants of right hepatic artery includes: arising directly from the proximal or middle part of common hepatic artery, gastroduodenal artery, superior mesenteric artery, celiac axis, aorta, splenic artery, or left gastric artery instead of arising from proper hepatic artery.[3]
