Right Axillary Artery Cannulation: Seldinger Technique

The authors present a right axillary artery cannulation in an elderly patient using the Seldinger technique. During axillary artery cannulation, the portion of the axillary artery between the first rib and the medial border of the pectoralis minor muscle is accessed. There are two ways to cannulate the axillary artery:

1. The direct approach: the artery is cannulated directly with the perfusion cannula inserted within a purse string (the Seldinger technique).
2. The indirect approach: the artery is approached indirectly by first sewing an 8 mm graft to the artery and then cannulating the graft.

Advantages of axillary artery cannulation:

• It allows perfusion of the brain during circulatory arrest.
• It avoids the complication of femoral artery cannulation.
• The axillary artery is rarely involved in atherosclerotic disease.