SINCE 1828

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

aortic arch

noun

Definition of aortic arch

1 :one of the arterial branches in vertebrate embryos that exist in a series of pairs with one on each side of the embryo, connect the ventral arterial system lying anterior to the heart to the dorsal arterial system above the digestive tract, and persist in adult fishes but are reduced or much modified in the adult of higher forms

2 :arch of the aorta

First Known Use of aortic arch

1802

Medical Dictionary

aortic arch

noun

medical Definition of aortic arch

1 :one of the arterial branches in vertebrate embryos that exist in a series of pairs with one on each side of the embryo, that connect the ventral arterial system lying anterior to the heart to the dorsal arterial system above the digestive tract, and that persist in adult fishes but are reduced or much modified in the adult of higher forms

2 :arch of the aorta

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