Arteria Lusoria: An uncommon cause of dysphagia

The arteria lusoria or right retro-esophageal subclavian artery is the most common malformation of the aortic arch, and may be associated with other congenital anomalies of the heart and large vessels, notably the bi-carotid trunk, which forms a common trunk giving rise to the two primitive internal carotid arteries. We report the case of a patient diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease of the left lower limb, whose CT angiography of the supra-aortic trunks, performed as part of her extension work-up, led to the fortuitous discovery of an aberrant retro-esophageal artery.