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Introduction: The male gonadal arteries, namely the testicular arteries, may vary at their origin and arise from the renal artery, suprarenal artery or lumbar artery. They may also be doubled, tripled or even quadrupled and may arise as a common trunk. With the advent of new intra-abdominal operative and laparoscopic techniques, the anatomy of the gonadal vessels has assumed much more importance. Therefore, a study was designed to assess the percentage of normal and aberrant origin and course of the testicular artery in the Indian population., Methods: The posterior abdominal walls of 34 male cadavers (68 sides) were dissected and studied for the variations in the origin and course of the testicular arteries., Results: In 85.3 percent of the cases, the male gonadal artery was normal in origin, number and course. However, in the remaining 14.7 percent, various anomalies in the testicular artery were noted., Conclusion: The variations in the testicular arteries are attributed to their embryological origin. A deep knowledge of these variations and their relations to the adjacent structures is very important in avoiding the complications in operative surgery.

When present, the meningo-orbital foramen forms an additional link between the orbit and the middle cranial fossa. It contains an arterial anastomose between the middle menigeal artery--the meningo-lacrimal branch and the lacrimal artery--the meningeal branch. The incidence of this foramen is known to vary between 28-82.9%. In the present study of 138 dry adult skulls of South Indian origin, the meningo-orbital foramen was present in 80.4% of population. The mean distance of the meningo-orbital foramen from the supra-orbital notch was 34.14 mm (29-38 mm) and from the fronto-zygomatic suture it was 26.10 mm (28-35 mm). The incidence and location of the meningo-orbital foramen may be of surgical significance to ophthalmologists (Tab. 1, Fig. 3, Ref. 7).