Morphologic Relationship Between the Coronary Arteries During Fetal Development/Relación Morfológica Entre las Arterias Coronarias Durante el Desarrollo Fetal

• Published in: International journal of morphology 2017-12, Vol.35 (4), p.1197
• Main Authors: Singh, S, Ajayi, N, Lazarus, L, Satyapal, K.S
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0717-9367

A detailed understanding of the coronary arteries is of paramount importance in the management of coronary arterial diseases. The arterial supply to the heart originates from right (RCA) and left (LCA) coronary arteries which form an oblique inverted crown within the atrioventricular groove. This study aimed to document the embryologic relationship between the RCA and the LCA including their lengths, diameters, branching patterns and arterial dominance in fetuses. Forty-one human fetal heart specimens with an age range of 13.13 to 26.95 weeks were dissected at the Department of Clinical Anatomy, University of Kwazulu- Natal, Durban, South Africa. The RCA arose from the right aortic sinus and was dominant in all the specimens. The LCA was classified into types according to their branching pattern. The bifurcation, bifurcation and quadrifurcation of the LCA occurred in 68.3 %, 29.3 % and 2.4 % of hearts, respectively. The mean lengths of the RCA and LCA were 0.98 [+ or -] 0.54 mm and 1.83 [+ or -] 0.77 mm, respectively. The mean external diameters of the RCA and LCA were 0.38 [+ or -] 0.12 mm and 0.49 [+ or -] 0.17 mm, respectively. There was a significant correlation between the RCA and LCA length and the fetal age which is indicative of significant changes in the coronary vasculature with fetal growth. KEY WORDS: Right coronary artery; Left coronary artery; Branching patterns; Bifurcation; Trifurcation; Quadrifurcation. Una comprension detallada de las arterias coronarias es de suma importancia en el manejo de las enfermedades en estas arterias. El suministro arterial al corazon se origina de las arterias coronarias derecha (ACD) e izquierda (ACI) que forman una "corona oblicua invertida" dentro del surco atrioventricular. Este estudio tuvo por objetivo documentar la relacion embriologica entre la ACD y la ACI, incluyendo sus longitudes, diametros, patrones de ramificacion y dominio arterial en fetos. Se disecaron 41 corazones de fetos humanos con un rango de edad de 13,13 a 26,95 semanas, en el Departamento de Anatomia Clinica, Universidad de Kwazulu-Natal, Durban, Sudafrica. La ACD surgio del seno aortico derecho y fue dominante en todos los especimenes. La ACI se clasifico en distintos tipos segun su patron de ramificacion. La bifurcacion, trifurcacion y cuadrifurcacion de la ACI ocurrieron en 68,3 %, 29,3 % y 2,4 % de los corazones, respectivamente. Las longitudes medias de la ACD y ACI fueron 0,98 [+ or -] 0,54 mm y 1,83 [+ or -] 0,77 mm, respectivame