Prostatic Artery Origin Variability: Five Steps to Improve Identification during Percutaneous Embolization.

Area of Science:

• Vascular Anatomy
• Interventional Radiology

Background:

• Prostatic artery embolization (PAE) is a treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia.
• Understanding prostatic artery anatomy is key for successful PAE.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the variability of prostatic artery origins.
• To highlight less common origins and PAE procedural challenges.
• To assist early-career interventional radiologists.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of digital subtraction angiography (DSA) from 35 PAE procedures.
• Examination of 70 hemi-pelvises to map prostatic artery origins.

Main Results:

• The most frequent prostatic artery origin is the internal pudendal artery (37.1%).
• Other common origins include the anterior gluteal trunk (27.1%) and superior vesical artery (21.4%).
• Less frequent origins identified: obturator artery (11.4%) and inferior gluteal artery (2.8%).

Conclusions:

• Prostatic artery origins show variability, though common sources remain consistent across studies.
• Awareness of all potential prostatic artery origins is vital for interventional radiologists.
• Successful embolization of prostatic parenchyma ensures treatment efficacy and minimizes complications.