Posterior parietal artery

At a glance

English

Posterior parietal artery

Latin (TA2)

Arteria parietalis posterior

System

Artery

Region

Head

Side

Paired, left and right

About the posterior parietal artery

The posterior parietal artery is one of the cortical branches of the middle cerebral artery. It leaves the lateral sulcus near its posterior end and runs upwards and backwards over the lateral surface of the parietal lobe, behind the anterior parietal artery and in front of the artery of the angular gyrus.

Its branches spread over the supramarginal gyrus, the gyrus that arches around the upturned end of the lateral sulcus, and over the lower part of the superior parietal lobule, with twigs that may follow the intraparietal sulcus. At its upper and posterior edges it meets the territories of the anterior and posterior cerebral arteries. It may arise from either the upper or the lower division of the middle cerebral artery, the pattern varying from brain to brain.

The posterior parietal cortex joins together touch, vision and hearing into a map of the body and of the space around it, and it guides reaching and attention. A blockage of the posterior parietal artery in the non-dominant hemisphere, usually the right, often produces neglect of the opposite side and difficulty with spatial tasks such as copying a drawing or dressing. In the dominant hemisphere, damage to the supramarginal gyrus can disturb the repetition of speech and the planning of skilled movements. These deficits may appear without weakness, because the motor cortex lies further forward in another branch's territory.

Course and supply

Arises from

The middle cerebral artery, near the posterior end of the lateral sulcus.

Ends in

Ends in branches over the supramarginal gyrus and superior parietal lobule, meeting anterior and posterior cerebral branches.

Supplies

Supplies the posterior parietal cortex, chiefly the supramarginal gyrus and the lower superior parietal lobule.