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Diameter of vessels across the tonsillar capsule as an anatomical consideration for tonsillectomy
Author(s) -
Lee KangDae,
Lee HyoungShin,
Hong JongChul,
Yu TaiHyun,
Lee HwanHo,
Chun BongGwon,
Gil YoungGi,
Kim KwangHoon
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
clinical anatomy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.667
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1098-2353
pISSN - 0897-3806
DOI - 10.1002/ca.20562
Subject(s) - medicine , capsule , tonsillectomy , anatomy , cadaver , plane (geometry) , vein , surgery , geometry , botany , mathematics , biology
The authors measured the diameters of vessels around the surgical plane of tonsillectomy to investigate an anatomical basis to reduce hemorrhage. Thirty tonsils removed from 15 adult cadavers with the mean age of 56 years (range 44–71 years) at the time of death were studied. Calibration of the vessels across the tonsillar capsule was performed at the 1‐mm intracapsular, capsular, and 1‐mm extracapsular plane as artery and vein, respectively. The average diameter of the arteries was 73.0 ± 33.1 μm at the 1‐mm intracapsular plane, 94.7 ± 33.5 μm at the capsular plane, and 139.5 ± 51.2 μm at the 1‐mm extracapsular plane. For the veins, it was 62.9 ± 38.7 μm at the 1‐mm intracapsular plane, 86.8 ± 50.4 μm at the capsular plane, and 133.6 ± 78.6 μm at the 1‐mm extracapsular plane. The diameters of the vessels at the 1‐mm intracapsular plane were significantly smaller than those at the capsular plane ( P < 0.01), and likewise the diameters of the vessels at the capsular plane were significantly smaller than those at the 1‐mm extracapsular plane ( P < 0.01). The result of this study on the diameter of the vessels across the tonsillar capsule could be considered to be an important factor providing an anatomical rationale for a change in recommendation leading to safer tonsillectomies that minimize vascular injury. Clin. Anat. 21:33–37, 2008. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.