Anatomical variations of the arterial supply to the adrenal gland in therat

[摘要] The adrenal gland is an essential endocrine organ for the stress response. The functionsof this organ may be studied by ligation of the adrenal artery or adrenalectomy. However,in prior studies, descriptions of the anatomical variations of the adrenal artery wereinsufficient and inconsistent. Therefore, anatomical variations of the arterial supply tothe adrenal gland were studied in 18 male and 18 female Wistar rats by colored latexinjection into the arteries. The vascularization pattern was categorized into 4 typesbased on the origin of each adrenal artery. The cranial and middle adrenal arteries arosefrom the caudal phrenic artery in Types 1–3, but the caudal adrenal artery emerged fromthe caudal phrenic artery in Type 1, from the renal artery in Type 2 and from theabdominal aorta in Type 3. In Type 4, the cranial and middle adrenal arteries stemmed fromthe cranial phrenic artery, and the caudal adrenal artery arose from the caudal phrenicartery. The number of adrenal arteries varied from 3 to 11 on the left side and from 4 to12 on the right side, and the total varied from 9 to 20 (predominantly 14) in eachindividual. There was no sex difference in the vascularization pattern. The results showthat more individual variations occur in the adrenal arteries of rats than was previouslyreported. Such variations should always be considered when experimental treatments of therat adrenal gland are performed.

[学科分类] 兽医学

[关键词] adrenal artery;angiology;macroscopic anatomy;rat