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Variations in hepatic arterial supply
Author(s) -
Canby Craig A.,
Nelson Daniel W.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.23.1_supplement.820.7
Subject(s) - medicine , common hepatic artery , artery , gastroduodenal artery , superior mesenteric artery , left gastric artery , trunk , abdomen , aorta , cardiology , anatomy , radiology , biology , ecology
The arterial supply to the liver is highly variable with variations occurring slightly less than 50% of the time. Variations occur, for example, when hepatic arteries are replaced or accessory arteries are present. Clinically, it is important to appreciate and recognize these hepatic arterial variations during radiologic and surgical procedures in the upper abdomen to affect positive patient outcomes. Consequently, the purpose of our study was to examine the frequency of variations in the hepatic arterial supply. Our study examined 84 cadavers for the presence of replaced and accessory arteries and the variant origin of the common hepatic artery (CHA). The most frequent pattern was type 2 (16.3%) which is characterized by the left gastric artery issuing an accessory vessel (n=13) or replaced left hepatic artery. A type III pattern [superior mesenteric artery (SMA) issuing a replaced right hepatic (n=13) or accessory artery] occurred 14% of the time. Infrequently, a replaced right hepatic artery originated from the gastroduodenal (GD) artery (3.5%) or celiac trunk (2.3%). In one instance, an accessory artery sprung from the GD. Lastly, the CHA was observed issuing from the aorta (2.3%) and SMA (1.2%). In summary, our study observed 35 instances of hepatic arterial variations (40.7%). The frequent occurrence of these variations underscores the importance of properly planning clinical procedures in the upper abdomen.