MULTIPLE   AND   RARE   VARIANT   BR ANCHES   OF   THE   CELIAC   TRUNK   COMBINED   WITH   RETROPORTAL   HEPATIC   PROPER ARTERY : A CASE REPORT Tongluk Teerasarntipan * 1 , Meechai Sreesai 2 .  *1 Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. 2  Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Corresponding   author   Address:   Dr.   Tongluk   Teerasarntipan,    Department   of   Medicine,   Faculty   of   Medicine,   Chulalongkorn   University,   1873   Rama   IV   Rd., Pathumwan, Bangkok, Thailand, 10330, Fax: +66-2-2564963 E-Mail:  kulgnotb@hotmail.com ABSTRACT Background: Understanding the variation patterns of the celiac trunk and its branches is necessary for the upper abdominal operations to prevent an unintentional injury to the variant structures. Purpose of the study: To point out the clinical importance of the variations in the vascular anatomical locations, especially when they coexisted with the variation in origin. Results: The common hepatic artery was not presented, as a result, the celiac trunk abnormally quadrifurcated into the left gastric, splenic, gastroduodenal and hepatic proper arteries. Variant arteries were further identified from these branches: the left gastric artery gave the accessory left hepatic artery, the replaced right gastric artery came off the gastroduodenal artery and the replaced posterior superior pancreaticoduodenal artery was originated from the hepatic proper artery. The hepatic proper artery was located posterior to the portal vein. The right and left terminal branches of the hepatic proper artery also ran behind their corresponding portal veins and hepatic ducts. 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