Abstract
Persistent sciatic artery (PSA) is a rare congenital vascular anomaly that occurs in about 0.01 to 0.06% of the population. A 62-year-old woman consulted another doctor for a 2-day history of intermittent claudication following acute-onset right leg pain. She was referred to our hospital with a diagnosis of acute ischemia of the right lower limb. Physical examination revealed an absence of pulsation of the right popliteal artery. The ankle brachial index (ABI) was 0.62, and computed tomography (CT) showed a right PSA that was occluded in the obturator foramen. She became able to walk about 300 m with conservative medical treatment. However, because of intermittent claudication, thrombectomy and femoropopliteal above-knee bypass were performed 13 days after the onset. The result of the surgery was successful, and her symptoms disappeared. Postoperative CT showed no residual thrombus, and her ABI improved to 1.07.
