Inferior mesenteric artery

Inferior mesenteric artery
Inferior mesenteric artery
	Sigmoid colon and rectum, showing distribution of branches of inferior mesenteric artery and their anastomoses. (Inferior mesenteric artery labeled at center.)
	Abdominal part of digestive tube and its attachment to the primitive or common mesentery. Human embryo of six weeks. (Inferior mesenteric artery labeled at bottom right.)
Details
Precursor	Vitelline arteries
Source	Abdominal aorta
Branches	Left colic artery, sigmoid branches, superior rectal artery
Vein	Inferior mesenteric vein
Supplies	Large Intestine
Identifiers
Latin	arteria mesenterica inferior
MeSH	D017537
TA98	A12.2.12.069
TA2	4291
FMA	14750
	Anatomical terminology

In human anatomy, the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) is the third main branch of the abdominal aorta and arises at the level of L3, supplying the large intestine from the distal transverse colon to the upper part of the anal canal. The regions supplied by the IMA are the descending colon, the sigmoid colon, and part of the rectum.^[1]

^ Standring, Susan (2016). Gray's anatomy: the anatomical basis of clinical practice (41st ed.). Philadelphia: Elsevier Limited. ISBN 978-0-7020-5230-9. OCLC 920806541.