Common Iliac Artery

Just to the left side of the body of the fourth lumbar vertebra, the abdominal aorta divides into two common iliac arteries. These again divide as they descend from the end of the aorta and each divides, between the last lumbar vertebra and the sacrum, into the external iliac artery, which supplies blood to much of the lower limbs, and the internal iliac artery, which supplies the viscera and the walls of the pelvis. Each common iliac artery divides into smaller branches to supply muscles and tissues in the ureter region and begins accessory to the renal arteries.