Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 16, 2026

Image Acquisition Method for the Sonographic Assessment of the Inferior Vena Cava
Published on: January 13, 2023
Failure to visualise the abdominal portion of the inferior vena cava with computed tomography: a clue to underlying
Abstract:
Failure to visualise the intra-abdominal portion of the inferior vena cava (IVC) using contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) is unusual. A review of 1272 contrast-enhanced abdominal CT examinations revealed that the IVC was not visible at one or more levels in only 132 (10.4%). In 57 (43%), non-visualisation was due to pathological processes, most frequently metastatic carcinoma, causing compression or thrombosis of the IVC. In the remainder, technical factors or artefacts could explain the non-visualisation. Techniques and procedures to improve visualisation of the IVC are discussed. Failure to visualise the IVC on CT at any level unexplained by artefacts is abnormal.
Related Concept Videos
Computed Tomography
The technique was invented in the 1970s and is based on the principle that as X-rays pass through the body, they are absorbed or reflected at different levels. In the technique, a patient lies on a motorized platform while a computerized axial tomography (CAT) scanner rotates...
Veins of Thorax
The azygos vein, positioned just right of the midline and anterior to the vertebral column, begins at the junction of the right ascending lumbar and subcostal veins, terminating in the superior vena cava. This vein drains blood from the right side of the thoracic wall, thoracic viscera, and posterior abdominal wall.
The...
Veins of the Abdomen and Pelvis
The inferior vena cava is fed by numerous smaller veins. The lumbar veins, for instance, drain the posterior abdominal wall, emptying both directly into the inferior vena cava and into the...
Imaging Studies for Cardiovascular System V: CT
Venous Thrombosis II: Clinical Manifestations and Diagnostic Studies
Imaging Studies III: Computed Tomography

