Branching patterns of the left portal vein and consequent implications in liver surgery: The left anterior sector

摘要: Purpose: There are still some open issues regarding the division in anatomo-functional units within the left liver. The aim of this study was to investigate the anatomy of the left portal vein (LPV) with particular attention to its branching patterns in a functional/surgical perspective.Methods: A retrospective systematic review of 204 triphasic MDCT abdominal scans was performed.Results: Normal anatomy with at least 1 independent portal pedicle for each of S2, S3, S4a, S4b (pattern I) and anomaly with common pedicle for S2-S3 (pattern II), for S4a-S4b (pattern III) or for both S2-S3 and S4a-S4b (pattern IV) were respectively found in 74.5%, 5%, 18.5%, 2% of patients. In 79.5% of cases, independent portal pedicles for S4a and S4b were found. The subdivision of the left liver in medial and lateral sectors following the Brisbane Classification appeared to respect the principle of independence of sectorial pedicles only in …