The Anterior Tibial Artery - Case Study Example

The Anterior Tibial Artery It appears that the acute swelling that has resulted may be due to rupture of an artery; most likely the Anterior Tibial Artery. If my friend is not taken to a hospital immediately, there is a possibility of developing a hypotensive shock due to extravasation of blood with the passage of time. Therefore emergency help should be immediately sought. The inability to dorsiflex can be related to the injury of tibialis anterior which is the main muscle in the anterior compartment of leg that is related to dorsiflexion at the ankle joint (Singh 130).

The common peroneal nerve runs parallel to the sciatic nerve from femur to buttocks and then takes its own way towards the knee and then behind the fibula. At this point it splits into the superficial and the deep peroneal nerves; the loss of sensation between the big toe and second toe can possibly be due to an injury to the deep peroneal nerve which plays its role in lifting the toe and also supplies the skin between big toe and second toe (Rose & Vincent 126).Involvement of an artery should definitely be included in the differential diagnosis of this case.

The artery that is most likely to get affected is the anterior tibial artery. Its patency can be evaluated by palpating the pulse of dorsalis pedis artery, which is one of the peripheral branches of anterior tibial artery (Casserly et al. 253).A similar symptom profile consisting of altered sensation in between the first and second toe, pulseless dorsalis pedis, swelling and pain is evident in the condition known as anterior compartment syndrome, which should therefore be included in the differential diagnosis of this case (Slobounov 332).

ReferencesCasserly, Ivan P, Ravish Sachar, and Jay S. Yadav. Manual of Peripheral Vascular Intervention. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2005. Internet resource.Rose, Jonathan D, and Vincent J. Martorana. The Foot Book: A Complete Guide to Healthy Feet. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2011. Internet resource.Singh, Inderbir. Essentials of Anatomy. New Delhi: Jaypee Bros, 2009. Print.Slobounov, Semyon. Injuries in Athletics: Causes and Consequences. New York: Springer, 2008. Print.