About variability of Vieussen valve in the adult human heart

The Vieussen valve is situated at the ostium of the great cardiac vein to the coronary sinus. There are no details about its shape in anatomic literature. The tested material consisted of 150 adult human hearts of both sexes from 18 to 85 years of age, fixed in a formalin/ethanol solution. Classical macroscopic anatomical methods were used. The Vieussen valve was found in about 65% of the tested material. It showed a large variability in terms of morphology

Variability of valve configuration in the lumen of the coronary sinus in the adult human hearts

Described by many authors, valves refer to the coronary sinus. The best known among them are Thebesius and Vieussen valves. Information about valves in the lumen of the coronary sinus, though, is rarely found in anatomic literature. Frequency of occurrence of valves in the lumen of the coronary sinus and the degree of their formation was chartered in this paper. 150 adult human hearts of both sexes from 18 to 85 years of age were tested, fixed in a formalin/ethanol solution. Classical macroscopic anatomical methods were used. The valves in the sinus lumen were observed in 10% of the tested hearts, usually presented as incomplete single ones (7.3%)

Myocardial bridges in the human heart: morphological aspects

The structures made of myocardium running most often above the coronary arteries are called the muscle bridges. However there is a large number of descriptions of that phenomenon, the data are not homogenous. Some papers affirm the occurrence of the clinical implications of their existence. The studied material contained 100 adult human hearts, both sexes, 21 to 76 years of age, preserved in formalin-ethanol solution. Standard anatomical methods were used in analysis with the help of a binocular magnifying glass. The presence of the bridges was confirmed in 41% of the researched material, most frequently above the anterior interventricular branch. The length of the bridges varies in the range of 2.3±42.8 mm, thickness 1.0±3.8 mm, angle between long axis of muscle fibres and long axis of the crossed vessel from 5° to 90°

Right-sided aortic arch

Congenital abnormalities of the aortic arch stem from a defect in the unilateral disappearance of arteries of the IVth and exceptionally of the III rd primary branchial arches and also of the appropriate sections of paired dorsal aortas. Apart from the cases of complete "situs inversus" and a double aortic arch, the following anatomical possibilities can be distinguished: A - a left-sided aortic arch with a properly established system of branches, B - a left-sided aortic arch with an aberrant right subclavian artery, C - a left-sided aortic arch with a retroesophageal course and right-sided descending aorta or retro-esophageal course of the brachiocephalic trunk onto the right side, D - a right-sided aortic arch of the "symmetric" type usually coexisting with cyanotic congenital heart lesions, E - a right-sided aortic arch with a retro-esophageal bulge and an aberrant left subclavian artery, and F - a right-sided aortic arch with an aorta descending left-sidedly or brachiocephalic trunk going left-sidedly behind the esophagus. At the Department of Anatomy from 1945 to 1998, 1700 adult cadavers were examined. Throughout this time, one case of each of the types E and C and two cases of the type B were noted in the material. Regardless of the rare occurrenceamong adults (about 0.01%), the abnormal course of the aortic arch can be the reason for atypical clinical symptoms such as esophageal compression and dysphagia or insufficient cerebral blood supply

Comparative research on the topography of middle and small cardiac veins in humans and other primates

Many researchers have been interested in cardiac veins, which at present play a very important clinical role in invasive cardiology. In this study the occurrence of middle and small cardiac veins and the topography of their outlet portions were examined. The material consisted of 150 adult human hearts of both sexes of 18 to 85 years of age and 50 adult hearts of representatives of various primates. In the material examined a middle cardiac vein was always observed, whereas the presence of a small cardiac vein was less consistent. The outlet portions of the main veins of the heart were characterised by significant variability

Provision of tricuspid valve leaflets by septal papillary muscles in the right ventricle of human and other mammal hearts

Leaflets of the tricuspid valve are provided by tendinous cords extending from the papillary muscles. The situation is complicated with the septal muscles, which generally occur in two groups, one as constant musculus coni arteriosi and the second as other variable septal muscles. We tested whether there is a variability in the provision of the tricuspid valve in different taxonomical groups of mammals. The material examined consisted of 299 hearts of mammals (Primates, Ungulata, Carnivora, Lagomorpha, Rodentia, Marsupialia). The musculus coni arteriosi in the majority of mammals provided only the front leaflet, but among Ungulata and Rodentia it provided simultaneously the front and septal leaflet. The other septal muscles provided the front, septal and even back leaflets. The following regularity was observed: in the hearts of Primates provision of the front leaflet and the front part of the septal leaflet predominated, among Ungulata the muscles provided the middle part of the septal leaflet, but among the other mammals the rest of the septal muscles provided, significantly, the back part of the septal leaflet. Such a provision was characteristic for predators, hares, rodents and marsupials. These circumstances may allow the conclusion to be drawn that there is a taxonomical dependence in the provision of the tricuspid valve in the hearts of the mammals under examination

Unusual anatomical features of the right atrioventricular valve

Despite the great interest taken in the tricuspid valve, the anatomical literature on the subject still leaves much open to question. The aim of this study was to describe the natural foramina which are present in the leaflets of the tricuspid valve, as well as, well — founded onto — and phylogenetically lack of continuity of its attachment and the frenula of the tricuspid valve. We studied the frequency of occurrence and morphology of these features of the tricuspid valve in 107 adult hearts

Remarks on the morphology of the papillary muscles of the right ventricle

In addition to the papillary muscles of right ventricle referred to in anatomical nomenclature, namely the anterior, posterior and septal, we have distinguished the “conal papillary muscle” and the “papillary muscle of the posterior angle of the right ventricle”. The conal papillary muscle was described by Luschka in the 17th century as the most constant of the septal papillary muscles. We have distinguished the muscles of the posterior angle of the right ventricle as muscles which would not be clearly classified as either septal or posterior muscles. Moreover, the muscles of the posterior angle of the right ventricle are probably associated with the transfer of the papillary muscles from the septum to the posterior wall of the right ventricle during phylogenetic evolution. Some researchers have classified them with the septal papillary muscles [11, 12], while others have assigned them to the posterior group [5]. The morphology of the muscles was classified using earlier categories for the posterior papillary muscles only. We have adopted the concept of multi-apical and multi-segmental muscles [5]

Distribution of muscular bridges in the adult human heart

Muscle bridges (MBs) are structures consisting of heart muscle tissue which pass above the coronary arteries and their branches. Although there are a relatively large number of descriptions of these MBs, researchers do not share a common view of the frequency of their occurrence, their location and their morphology, which remain the most controversial questions. The present research was carried out on 300 human hearts, adults of both sexes (161 male and 139 female), of between 21 and 76 years of age (mean age 48 years), in which no macroscopic developmental failures had been found. The hearts were preserved in formalinethanol solution. Selected coronary arteries were analysed. Images were examined of the perpendicular dissection of the coronary arteries and their neighbouring structures. On the basis of the analysis, the frequency of occurrence of MBs was defined as 31.3%. Muscular bridges were observed most frequently over the anterior interventricular branch of the left coronary artery (RIA) and, more rarely, over the right marginal branch of the left coronary artery (Rmd) and the circumflex branch of the left coronary artery (RCX). Using as criteria the number of muscular bridges in the heart and their location over particular coronary arteries, 4 types of configuration were established. With reference to the RIA, most MBs were located in the central part. We did not notice the same regularity with reference to other coronary arteries, nor did we observe MBs over coronary veins. Conclusions: muscular bridges are frequently observed structures in human hearts, most often seen over the anterior interventricular branch of the left coronary artery (RIA), mainly over its central segments, and occasionally over other arteries. MBs may occur in the heart singly or in a greater number and are found over the same or different vessels