Trunk vessels (aorta, vena cava, abdominal branches)
Renal veins
Vena renalis (dextra et sinistra)
- Origin
- Formed at the renal hilum by the confluence of intrarenal tributaries
- Insertion
- Empty into the IVC at L1-L2; the left renal vein is longer (~7.5 cm), crosses between the abdominal aorta and SMA, and receives the left gonadal and left suprarenal veins
- Function
- Drains deoxygenated, filtered blood from the kidneys and left adrenal/gonad into the IVC
- Innervation
- Autonomic vasomotor fibers
- Movement & chain
- Continuous low-pressure venous return
- Palpation
- Not palpated directly
- Clinical
- Nutcracker syndrome (compression of the left renal vein between aorta and SMA causing hematuria, flank pain, and left-sided varicocele), renal vein thrombosis (common in nephrotic syndrome), tumor thrombus propagation in RCC.
- Segmental innervation
- T10-L1 levels
- In clinical practice
- Doppler detection of renal vein thrombosis, monitoring for pulmonary embolism in acute thrombosis, anticoagulation management
- Region in the model
- Trunk vessels (aorta, vena cava, abdominal branches)