External iliac artery External iliac artery The external iliac arteries are two major arteries which bifurcate off the common iliac arteries anterior to the sacroiliac joint of the pelvis. They proceed anterior and inferior along the medial border of the psoas major muscles. They exit the pelvic girdle posterior and inferior to the inguinal ligament about one third laterally from the insertion point of the inguinal ligament on the pubic tubercle at which point they are referred to as the femoral arteries. The external iliac artery is usually the artery used to attach the renal artery to the recipient of a kidney transplant.
Middle colic artery to which they distribute branches. Middle colic artery The middle colic artery is a branch of the superior mesenteric artery that mostly supplies the transverse colon. It arises just below the pancreas. It passes inferiorly and anteriorly between the layers of the transverse mesocolon, and divides into left and right branches. The right branch anastomoses with the right colic artery, and the left anastomoses with the left colic artery, a branch of the inferior mesenteric artery. This sequence of anastomses are frequently referred to as the marginal artery of the colon. The arches thus formed are placed about two fingers’