Video - Vessels and nerves of the forearm

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Video Summary

The forearm is part of the upper limb between the elbow and the wrist. It contains arteries, veins, and nerves that supply the muscles, bones, and skin of the forearm and hand.

The main arteries of the forearm are the ulnar and the radial arteries, which arise from the bifurcation of the brachial artery. The ulnar artery gives off three major branches immediately distal to the elbow: the anterior ulnar recurrent artery, the posterior ulnar recurrent artery, and the common interosseous artery. In the wrist region, the ulnar artery gives the other two branches, which are the palmar and dorsal carpal branches. Immediately distal to the elbow, the radial artery gives off its first branch called the radial recurrent artery, and then gives the other two branches in the wrist region: the dorsal and palmar carpal branches which anastomose with those of the ulnar artery.

The forearm has superficial and deep veins. The superficial veins are those which can be found in the superficial fascia and are easily accessible. These are the cephalic vein, the basilic vein, and the median cubital vein which connect the cephalic and basilic veins in the area of the cubital fossa. The deep veins are located deep in the muscles, and they commonly accompany major arteries as the venae comitantes �, which is Latin for accompanying veins �. Finally, three important nerves are running in the forearm: the median nerve, the ulnar nerve, and the radial nerve.