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The great cardiac vein
1Institute of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Yugoslavia.
Insights
The great cardiac vein, the heart's longest vessel, often originates in the anterior interventricular sulcus. It forms a venous ring with other cardiac veins and arteries, with variable anatomical relationships.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Anatomy
- Cardiac Veins
- Coronary Anatomy
Background:
- The great cardiac vein is the longest venous vessel in the heart.
- Understanding its origin and course is crucial for cardiac procedures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the anatomical course and relationships of the great cardiac vein.
- To analyze its origin, tributaries, and arterial associations.
Main Methods:
- Anatomical dissection and observation.
- Analysis of origin points and venous confluence patterns.
Main Results:
- The great cardiac vein most commonly originates in the lower third of the anterior interventricular sulcus (58%).
- It merges with the middle cardiac vein at the apex, forming a venous ring with the coronary sinus around the left ventricle.
- The vein crosses anterior interventricular and circumflex coronary artery branches, forming the triangle of Brocq and Mouchet, with unpredictable arterial relationships in 30% of cases.
Conclusions:
- The great cardiac vein exhibits a consistent origin but variable relationships with coronary arteries.
- Detailed anatomical knowledge is essential for interpreting imaging and planning interventions.
Abstract:
The great cardiac vein is the longest venous vessel of the heart; in the majority of our cases it originated at the lower third of the anterior interventricular sulcus (58%). The great and the middle cardiac veins merge at the apex of the heart, forming together with the coronary sinus into which they both empty, a complete venous ring around the left ventricle (13%). On reaching the area of the coronary sulcus, the great cardiac vein crosses the anterior interventricular branch and the circumflex branch of the left coronary artery forming the triangle of Brocq and Mouchet in which the vein is mainly superficial (61%). One, two or three anterior ventricular branches of the left coronary artery traverse this triangle; the relations of the vein and these arteries are very variable and practically unpredictable in 30% of the cases.