Congenital Anatomical Variant of the Clavicle

The aim of this study is to present a rare abnormality of the clavicle (Code: SGS01) that was discovered in an ossuary in the Church of San Gaetano (Sulmona, central Italy; XVII–XIX centuries CE). In the middle third, the clavicle had three areas with losses of substance in the form of oval-shaped foramina with maximum diameters of 1–2 cm that were located in the anterior and superior surfaces of the diaphysis. The margins of these foramina were well defined and rounded, and the surfaces of the canal walls were smooth. Additionally, there were no zones of bony activity or reactive changes around the foramina. This new congenital anomaly of the clavicle and blood vessels is consistent with a variant that might have originated during fetal growth in which the subclavian vein or artery remained included during the process of ossification of the clavicle. Anat Rec, 300:1401–1408, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.