7. • CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE
• (i) Diagnostic signiAicance: portosystemic collateral pathways
constitutes the direct sign of portal hypertension on imaging.
• (ii) Prognostic signiAicance: The more severe and more
prolonged the portal hypertension, the higher are the number
of portosystemic pathways.
• (iii) Therapeutic signiAicance: Detailed information about
collateral pathways is especially relevant when therapeutic
interventional procedures or surgery is being contemplated as
inadvertent collateral vessel injury can be potentially lethal As
these vessels can easily torn and are difNicult to repair
• There have been many reported cases of intraoperative
mortality and morbidity due to unintentional disruption of
unexpected portosystemic collaterals.
23. Recanalised paraumblical vein :
• Ligamentum teres in the left lobe of liver
• Recanalized visible as a channel greater than 3 mm in diameter
• Hepatofugal Nlow
• Recanalization of umbilical vein is a highly speciNic sign of portal
hypertension
• From the umbilicus, the blood may pass to the superior or
inferior epigastric veins, or through subcutaneous veins in the
anterior abdominal wall, known as the ‘Caput Medusa’, to reach
the systemic circulation.
• Patients with known portal hypertension, who present with an
umbilical hernia, should undergo imaging evaluation prior to
surgery as the hernia may contain a dilated varix, rather than
bowel. This pathway has less risk of life-threatening variceal
bleeding
30. • ESOPHAGEAL & PARA-ESOPHAGEAL COLLATERALS
• Typical CT appearance is nodular thickening of the esophageal wall
and enhancing nodular intraluminal protrusions with scalloped
borders
• Esophageal varices are enlarged, tortuous veins situated in the wall of
the lower esophagus formed by dilated subepithebial, submucosal
and perforating veins. While, the paraesophageal varices are situated
outside the esophagus in the posterior mediastinum
• Esophageal varices are usually supplied by the anterior branch of the
left gastric vein, whereas the posterior branch of this vein supplies
paraesophageal collateral vessels.
• Blood from the esophageal and paraesophageal varices usually drains
into the azygos vein (78%). Uncommonly, it drains into the IVC
(12%), or pulmonary or brachiocephalic veins
• Clinical signiAicance: Esophageal varices are common collateral
pathways observed in portal hypertension which may increase up to
six-fold in size and can carry up to a half litre of blood per minute.
Unfortunately, they are the commonest to bleed in cirrhotic patients
owing to the high-volume of blood Nlow and account for the high
mortality associated with spontaneous variceal bleeding.
43. SPLENO-RENAL & GASTRO-SPLENORENAL
COLLATERALS:
• Collaterals along the spleen, primarily supplied by the short
gastric vein, usually shunt the blood into the left renal vein
(systemic circulation) via a spleno-renal shunt
• The splenic collaterals may also drain into left suprarenal vein
and then into the left renal vein (i.e. splenoadrenorenal
shunt).
• Varices in this location may communicate with gastric,
perigastric or retrogastric varices and drain through a common
shunt into the left renal vein (spleno-gastrorenal shunt)
• Among patients with large spontaneous shunts, there is a high
frequency of hepatic encephabopathy and their closure has
shown good results in improving the patient's neurological
status.
51. • ATYPICAL COLLATERAL PATHWAYS
• MESENTERICO-GONADAL & MESENTERICO-CAVAL VARICES:
• Mesenterico-gonadal or mesenterico-caval varices are
uncommon collateral pathways communicating between
intestinal or retroperitoneal tributaries of the superior and
inferior mesenteric veins and systemic veins
• The mesenteric varices are more commonly supplied by
branches SMV and usually drain into the IVC through the dilated
right gonadal vein, right renal vein, or sometimes directly join
the IVC.
• In rare instances IMV provides a conduit for portosystemic
shunting.