Artery

Axillary artery

Right upper limb, arm abducted, seen from in front

Before you touch the pencil

Students memorise these lines and then cannot draw them, because they learned the line instead of the landmarks. Do it the other way round. The axillary artery begins at the outer border of the first rib and ends at the lower border of teres major, so its surface marking is simply a line between two things you can feel. Abduct the arm first — the description assumes it.

Position: Abduct the arm to a right angle with the palm facing forwards.

0 of 2 points placed

Point 1 of 2

Midpoint of the clavicle

Feel for it: Run a finger along the clavicle from the sternum to the shoulder and stop halfway; the bone is subcutaneous throughout, so this is easy to find on yourself.

What lies deep to the line

Skin, superficial fascia and the clavipectoral fascia in its first part
Pectoralis minor, which crosses it and divides it into three parts
The cords of the brachial plexus, named for their position around the second part

Viva voce

1 of 5 · 0 answered

Say your answer out loud before you open it. That is the exam skill.

Where does the axillary artery begin and end?

The points, in order

1. Midpoint of the clavicle
Run a finger along the clavicle from the sternum to the shoulder and stop halfway; the bone is subcutaneous throughout, so this is easy to find on yourself.
2. Lower border of teres major, in front of the posterior axillary fold
Grip the back wall of the armpit between finger and thumb; the thick fold you hold is latissimus dorsi and teres major, and this point is at its lower edge.

Do not confuse it with

The subclavian artery
The subclavian becomes the axillary at the outer border of the first rib, so anything medial to the midpoint of the clavicle is subclavian.

Examiner trap

Drawing the line with the arm by the side. Every description of this marking assumes the arm is abducted, and the line moves if it is not.

Memory hook

One, two, three branches from the first, second and third parts.

Senior’s 30-second takeaway

Axillary artery — the whole bench in four lines. Read this on the way in.

If you see this: A line asked for in the abducted arm · Two palpable points: mid-clavicle and the lower edge of the back wall of the axilla · A broad line, gently convex upwards
If asked to identify it: From the midpoint of the clavicle to the lower border of teres major, with the arm abducted to a right angle.
If asked one more: Pectoralis minor crosses it and divides it into three parts, with one, two and three branches.
If asked why it matters: It is compressed against the humerus in the axilla; it is the subclavian artery that is compressed against the first rib.

Then stop. Let the examiner ask the next question.

🩺 Before you touch the pencil

What lies deep to the line

🎙️ Viva voce

Senior’s 30-second takeaway

Before you touch the pencil

Viva voce