The inferior phrenic arteries are two slender vessels which arise very irregularly from the abdominal aorta, either above or below the celiac trunk. Arising separately or by a common trunk, they pass upward and laterally and diverge over the crura of the diaphragm. The left passes behind the esophagus and forward along the left side of the esophageal opening. The right crosses over the back of the liver and the inferior vena cava. Each divides into a medial and a lateral branch. The medial branch passes forward to supply the diaphragm and anastomoses with the phrenic artery of the opposite side and with the musculophrenic artery. The lateral branch runs to the side of the chest, where it anastomoses with the intercostal arteries. The medial branch of the right also supplies the inferior vena cava, the liver, and the right suprarenal gland. The medial branch of the left sends branches to the left suprarenal gland and the spleen.

Arteria phrenica inferior

Artère phrénique inférieure