American Board of Surgery Qualifying Exam (ABS QE) Practice Test

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Prepare for the American Board of Surgery Qualifying Exam with detailed quizzes. Study with flashcards and multiple-choice questions to master the ABS QE topics. Get all the hints and explanations you need to succeed on your first attempt!

Each practice test/flash card set has 50 randomly selected questions from a bank of over 500. You'll get a new set of questions each time!

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Which artery is a branch of the thyrocervical trunk?

Superior thyroid artery
Inferior thyroid artery
External carotid artery
Internal carotid artery

The correct answer is: Inferior thyroid artery

The inferior thyroid artery is a branch of the thyrocervical trunk, which itself is a branch of the subclavian artery. The thyrocervical trunk gives rise to several important arteries, and among these, the inferior thyroid artery specifically supplies the thyroid gland as well as structures in the neck, including the parathyroid glands and muscles. This anatomical relationship highlights the importance of the inferior thyroid artery in vascularizing critical structures within the neck, which is especially relevant for surgical procedures involving the thyroid or parathyroid glands. The other options, such as the superior thyroid artery, external carotid artery, and internal carotid artery, either originate from different sources or have distinct anatomical pathways that do not include the thyrocervical trunk in their origins.