Abstract
In discussing the vascular spread of carcinoma of the gallbladder, it is necessary to know the anatomy of the venous drainage of this organ. This work, using corrosion liver casts of 52 cases, was performed to study the venous drainage of the gallbladder. Almost all the cholecystic veins entered the adjacent substance of the liver and emptied into the portal circulation in the liver. In one case, however, cholecystic vein entered the main portal vein directly.
The cholecystic vein was divided into two groups; veins on the hepatic side and veins on the peritoneal side. The cholecystic vein on the hepatic side, which was found in 33 cases of the 52 liver casts, entered the quadrate lobe of the liver and terminated in the portal brunches of S4 and/or S5. On the other hand, cholecystic veins on the peritoneal side, which was found 38cases of the 52 liver casts, traversed Calot's triangle along with cholecystic artery and terminated in portal branches. Although the termination of cholecystic veins on peritoneal side had many variations,13 cases terminated in portal branches of the right anterior segment of the liver.
