Temporal branches of middle cerebral artery
Rami temporales arteriae mediae cerebri
The group of cortical branches that the middle cerebral artery sends down from the lateral sulcus over the lateral surface of the temporal lobe.
At a glance
- English
- Temporal branches of middle cerebral artery
- Latin (TA2)
- Rami temporales arteriae mediae cerebri
- System
- Artery
- Region
- Head
- Side
- Paired, left and right
About the temporal branches of middle cerebral artery
The temporal branches of the middle cerebral artery are the vessels that leave the lateral sulcus downwards and spread over the outer surface of the temporal lobe. Named from front to back, they are the anterior, middle and posterior temporal branches and the temporo-occipital branch, though their number and size vary from brain to brain. Many come from the lower division of the artery.
Together they supply the superior and middle temporal gyri along their whole length and the upper part of the inferior temporal gyrus where it is visible from the side. The anterior branch, or in some brains a separate temporal polar artery, reaches the temporal pole, and the posterior branches extend back towards the occipital lobe. Smaller twigs pass into the depths of the lateral sulcus to the transverse temporal gyri on its floor. The inferior surface of the temporal lobe lies mostly in the territory of the posterior cerebral artery, and the two systems meet along its lower border.
The territory contains the primary auditory cortex in the transverse temporal gyri and, in the dominant hemisphere, the language comprehension area at the back of the superior temporal gyrus. Occlusion of the lower division of the middle cerebral artery, which carries many of these branches, can therefore produce a fluent aphasia with poor comprehension in the dominant hemisphere, often with little or no weakness. Hearing is rarely lost from damage to one side, because each ear projects to both hemispheres.
Course and supply
- Arises from
- The middle cerebral artery, many of them from its lower division, in the lateral sulcus.
- Ends in
- End in branches over the lateral temporal lobe, meeting branches of the posterior cerebral artery along its lower border.
- Supplies
- Supply the lateral surface of the temporal lobe, including the temporal pole, the transverse temporal gyri and the language area of the dominant side.
Anthromica
See the temporal branches of middle cerebral artery where it really sits, with every layer of the body around it.
- Every layer, one body. Peel from muscle to bone, nerve, vessel and organ, and turn it any way.
- English and Latin. Every structure named the way your exam names it.
- Quiz until it sticks. Short drills on the structures you keep missing.
Free to start. No card.
