The ascending cervical artery is a branch of the inferior thyroid artery, ascending between the anterior and middle scalene muscles to supply the prevertebral muscles, cervical vertebrae, and contribute to the spinal cord circulation via radicular branches. It provides muscular branches to the deep cervical muscles and anastomoses with the ascending pharyngeal and occipital arteries.
The ascending cervical artery is ligated during anterior cervical spine surgery approaches when exposing C4-C7. Its radicular branches contribute to the anterior spinal artery at cervical levels and must be considered during cervical artery embolisation for spinal tumour devascularisation. Inadvertent ligation of a dominant radicular branch can cause cervical spinal cord ischaemia. Injury during carotid endarterectomy is rare but produces cervical muscular haematoma.
Spinal cord or nerve root infarction from interruption of a dominant ascending cervical radicular artery during anterior cervical surgery or embolisation, producing new neurological deficits in the distribution of the affected cord level.
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