Abstract:
During a routine anatomical dissection we discovered an aberrant muscle slip associated with the pectoralis minor muscle that occurred bilaterally.The muscle slips originated from ribs five or six and inserted into the tendon of the coracobrachialis in close proximity to the coracoid process of the scapula.Fibers of the muscle slip also blended with the pectoralis minor muscle on its lateral border and were innervated by the medial pectoral nerve. Many of the muscular variants reported in the literature are discovered during routine cadaveric dissection and are of great interest to anatomists and developmental biologists. However, recognizing and understanding both normal and variant anatomy of the anterior thorax and axilla is of critical importance to health care professionals when diagnosing, imaging, or surgically treating these areas. It is not uncommon to observe known anatomical variants during cadaveric dissection, however many of these variants are not commonly discussed during the regular clinical coursework of health care professionals. The result is a gap of knowledge for clinicians who are more likely to confuse the variant with some form of pathology. This may result in improper or delayed treatment. For this reason it is important to add variants such as the one in this case to the anatomical record.
