Hepatic circulation

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Cafer Zorkun, M.D., Ph.D. [2]

The liver receives its oxygen from a small hepatic artery that branches off the coelic artery, but most of the blood flowing through the liver comes from the gut. All the blood delivered by the coeliac artery, the anterior mesenteric artery and the posterior mesenteric artery is collected into the large hepatic portal, which runs parallel to the common bile duct. Usually, the hepatic portal does not get injected with latex, so it can be difficult to see.

After it enters the liver, the hepatic portal distributes blood to a vast network of sinuses in the liver, where it can be screened and its solutes adjusted. These sinuses are then drained by small veins which merge to form the hepatic vein. The hepatic vein, shown in the photo, was buried right in the tissue of the liver, and had to be dissected out. The hepatic vein then takes blood to the posterior vena cava.

Template:WH Template:WS