Quick Facts
Origin: Pulmonary trunk.
Course: Extends laterally to the right, towards the hilum of the right lung.
Branches: Superior, middle and inferior lobar arteries.
Supplied Structures: The bronchopulmonary segments of the right lung.
Related parts of the anatomy
Origin
As the pulmonary trunk extends posteriorly to the left of the ascending aorta, it bifurcates into right and left pulmonary arteries in the concavity of the aortic arch. The right pulmonary artery is longer than its left counterpart.
Course
The right pulmonary artery travels under the aortic arch towards the hilum of the right lung accompanied by the right main bronchus. As it emerges from behind the superior vena cava, the right pulmonary artery gives off a small superior lobar artery. The right pulmonary artery continues to descend, along with the intermediate bronchus, and at the point where the horizontal fissure meets the oblique fissure, it divides into middle and inferior lobar arteries.
Branches
The branches of the right pulmonary artery include the superior, middle, and inferior lobar arteries. The superior lobar artery gives rise to apical, anterior, and posterior segmental arteries of the superior lobe; the middle lobar artery provides the medial and lateral segmental arteries of the middle lobe; the inferior lobar arteries give off the superior and basal segmental arteries.
Supplied Structures
The right pulmonary artery provides the alveolar structures in each bronchopulmonary segment of the right lung with deoxygenated blood. It is the bronchial arteries from the systemic circulation that provide oxygenated blood to the tissue of the lungs.
List of Clinical Correlates
- Pulmonary embolism
