anatomy of the coronary arteries and veins

Anatomy of the coronary circulation

&Angiographic VISUALIZATION

Dr Sandeep Mohanan Department of Cardiology Calicut Medical College 1/10/12

OUTLINE

• Coronary arterial anatomy

• Variations in coronary circulation

• Coronary venous anatomy

• Angiographic views of coronary arteries

Coronary arterial anatomy• 1st anatomical drawings- Leonardo da Vinci• Oblique inverted crown

• The coronary arteries and their major branches are sub-epicardially located

Epicardial Vessel

Subepicardium

Subendocardium

Myocardium

Pericardium (Epicardium)

• LCA ostium ~ 4mm• RCA ostium~ 3.2mm

The LEIDEN convention• Each artery arises from respective aortic sinuses - Right coronary sinus(anterior) - Left coronary sinus(left posterior) - Non-coronary sinus(right posterior)

1R2LCx pattern

Right coronary artery~ 9.8cm 1)Conus artery/ Infundibular/ Third coronary/

Adipose /Arteria of Vieussens- Separate ostium in 23% - 51%- Circle of Vieussens

Right coronary artery2) Atrial branches of the RCA- < 1mm- SA nodal artery ( Ramus crista terminalis) – 55-65%

Right coronary artery3) Right ventricular branches- Acute right marginal artery- Ramus crista supraterminalis (Superior septal artery) –

12 -20% , males

Right coronary artery4) Posterior descending artery- Dominance- Posterior septal branches - < 15mm5) AV nodal artery- 80 -90%

Right coronary artery6) Postero-lateral branches to the LV

- Inferior wall of the LV

Clinical division of the RCA• Proximal - Ostium to 1st main RV branch• Mid - 1st RV branch to acute marginal branch• Distal - acute margin to the crux

Left coronary artery LMCA- 10-15mm(upto 30mm) length & 3-6mm(upto 10mm

diameter)- Trifurcates in 1/3rd : Ramus intermedius/ median artery/ left

diagonal artery/straight LV artery- Rare variations – absent LMCA/ pentafurcation

Left anterior descending artery - ~ 14.7 cm ; Type I (22%) , Type II & Type III- 2-9 diagonal branches- 90deg bend after turning around P. conus as it gives off 2nd

diagonal branch- Right ventricular branches( left conal/pre-infundibular A)- ~ 10 septal perforating branches (40-80mm X 0.5-1.2mm)

anchors the LAD

LAD(contd)- 1st proximal septal A is prominent (His Bundle and LBB)- Myocardial bridging – 0.5-1.6% overall (28% in children)- Rarely dual LADs

Clinical division of the LAD• Proximal - Ostium to 1st major septal perforator• Mid - 1st perforator to D2 (90 degree angle)• Distal - D2 to end

Left circumflex artery- ~9.3 cm long ; 1.5 -5mm - Left atrial branches- Kugel’s artery (Arteria anastomotica auricularis magna)- LV branches are called the Obtuse marginal arteries

Clinical division of the LCX• Proximal - Ostium to 1st major obtuse marginal branch• Mid - OM1 to OM2• Distal - OM2 to end

Coronary segment classification system

• CASS investigators – 27 segments• BARI – 29 segments ( ramus intermedius and

3rd diagonal branch) - Obstructive CAD : > 50% stenosis

“Dominance”• A misnomer• giving rise to PDA, at least 1 PLV & AV nodal A (BARI classification)

- 85% right dominant - 8% left dominant- 7% co-dominant(70%/ 10%/ 20% – Hurst’s THE HEART)

• Left dominance is 25-30% in Bi-AoV

Gensini GG. Coronary Arteriography. Mount Kisco,NY: Futura Publishing Co; 1975:260–274.

Nodal blood supply

• Studies on nodal blood supply principally by James (1961) and Hutchinson( 1978)

- James : SA node - RCA 55% & LCA 45% AV node- RCA 90% & LCA 10%

- Hutchinson : SA node - 65% & 35% AV node- 80% & 20%

AV node may have dual supply in 2% cases

Arterial anastomoses

• Seen at the intracoronary/inter-coronary levels in abundance– significant in development in collaterals in CAD

• Most abundant at the septum

• Intracoronary : 1-2cm X 20- 250 micm• Inter-coronary: 2-3 cm X 20-350 micm

Coronary artery variations

• 2 coronary artery system is a recent evolutionary acquisition

• Fish and amphibia – 1 coronary artery• Birds – ~ 40% have single coronary arteries.

• 1-5% of those undergoing CAG

Angelini P – Coronary artery anomalies – current clinical issues. Definition, classifications, incidence, clinical relevance and treatment guidelines. Tex Heart Inst J 2002;29:271-278

Coronary artery variations• Definition of a coronary artery is not based on its origin

and proximal course, but by focusing on its intermediate and distal segments/ its dependent microvascular bed.

Angelini P – Coronary artery anomalies – current clinical issues. Definition, classifications, incidence, clinical relevance and treatment guidelines. Tex Heart Inst J 2002;29:271-278

• ? Coronary artery Variation vs Anomalies • A broad spectrum of variations of which some

may cause adverse effects• Most of the coronary variations may have no

clinical implications as can be proven by myocardial perfusion studies.

• The regional distribution of a coronary artery, rather than its absolute origin and characteristics.

A puzzling issue…..

• Proximal course of the LAD may be very different

• LCx may run over atrial or ventricular surface.• An RCA that terminates in the AV groove well

before the crux may not always be an obstruction: 7 – 10% (Grossman)

• Double ostia from the RCS• All 3 arteries from a single sinus• One single artery……………..and so on……

• The most common coronary variation (Cleveland

Clinic-1,26,000 patients) was separate ostia for LAD & LCX – 0.41% and 2nd commonest was LCX from RCS / RCA – 0.37%

• However, in another series of 1950 angiograms coronary anomalies were seen in 5.6% cases and split RCA (1.2%) was the commonest.

Angelina P. Coronary artery anomalies. Philadelphia, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 1999.

• Level of variables1) Ostium 2) Size 3) Proximal course 4) Mid-course 5) Intra-myocardial ramifications 6) Termination

• MSCT with retrospective ECG gating is now considered the gold standard for characterization of coronary anomalies.

• Prompt a search for underlying CHDs

1) Shi H, Aschoff AJ, Brambs HJ. Multislice CT imaging of anomalous coronary arteries. Eur Radiol. 2004;14:2172-2182. 2) Memisoglu E, Hobikoglu G, Tepe MS. Congenital coronary anomalies in adults: Comparison of anatomic course visualized by catheter angiography and electron beam CT. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv. 2005;66:34-42.

Abnormal position of ostia• Coronary orifice below the cuspal margin: - 10% RCS- 15% LCS• Coronaries above the sinotubular jn ~ 6% - leads to difficult

cannulation, esp RCA with a high anterior ostium.

Abnormal number of coronary arteries

• Single coronary artery - 0.024%, usually benign D/d- 2 separate ostia from same sinus, atresia.. Course is important – in 25% a major branch crosses

the infundibulum.• 3 coronaries - 1) Separate origin of conus artery from RCS (36- 50%)2) Absent LMCA with separate ostia for LAD & LCX• 4 coronaries - case reports

• Dual LAD- 0.13 -1% (Morettin ,1976)

Absent LMCA

• ~0.4%- 1 ostia at the LCS/ 2 ostia in LCS/ 1 ostia in LCS & other RCS- Increased incidence of Left dominance- 6% incidence of bridging- Not usually associated with CHDs- Similar incidence of atherosclerosis- Difficulty in selective cannulation

Topaz et al. Absent left main coronary artery: angiographic findings in 83 patients with separate ostia of the left anterior descending and circumflex arteries at the left aortic sinus.Am Heart J.1991 Aug;122(2):447-52.

Shepherd’s-crook RCA• ~5% • Acute superiorly angled take-off of the RCA

from the aorta.• Difficult RCA lesion angioplasty

Ethan Halpern. Cardiac CT . Functional anatomy.

Dual LAD (Duplication)• ~0.13 - 1% of normal hearts• Proximal LAD (LAD proper) bifurcates early into a

short and long LAD -Type I : Short LAD in AIVS, Long LAD on prox AIVS, LV side, distal AIVS

-Type II : Short LAD in AIVS, Long LAD on prox AIVS, RV side, distal AIVS

-Type III: Short LAD in AIVS, Long LAD intra-myocardially in septum

-Type IV: Very short LAD proper and short LAD, Long LAD from RCA

Spindola-Franco H et al. Dual left anterior descending coronary artery: angiographic description of Important variants and surgical implications. Am Heart J 1983:105;445–55.

Coronary artery Ectasia• 1 - 5% in angiographic series, more in males• 20- 30 % are congenital• Dialatation of a segment to at least 1.5times of the

adjacent normal coronary artery.

Coronary venous anatomy

• Targeted drug delivery

• Retrograde cardioplegia administration

• Potential conduit to bypass cor. artery stenosis

• Stem cell delivery to the infarcted region

• Access to LA & LV myocardium for arrythmia mapping & ablation

• LV epicardial pacing in CRT

Coronary venous anatomy

THEBESIAN veins – Venae cordis minimae

Conventional coronary venous nomenclature

• Coronary sinus - Thebasian valve• Anterior IV vein(Great cardiac vein) - Vieussens valves - Left marginal vein of LV - Postero-lateral LV vein • Middle cardiac vein• Small cardiac veins

• SEGMENTAL CLASSIFICATION

Segmental venous classification

• Thus 9 LV venous segments are derived which when added with the conventional classification gives the best comprehensive information to place the epicardial LV leads for CRT purposes

Retrograde coronary venography

MDCT angiogram delineating coronary veins along with arteries

Coronary Angiographic Views• Cardiac Cath 1st by Werner Forssman in 1929• 1st contrast angiography by Chavez in 1947• CART 1st performed by F. Mason Sones in 1958

• a high-resolution image-intensifier television system with digital cineangiographic capabilities.

- Radiograph tube below and Image intensifier above (Flouroscopic imaging system with C-arm)

- Physiologic monitoring system, sterile supplies, resuscitation equipment, Contrast injector (3-8ml/sec) and contrast media

• Information from a CAG:

CAG helps visualization of the major epicardial arteries up to their 2nd and 3rd order branches

- Coronary anatomy- Characteristics and distribution of coronary stenosis- Distal vessel size- Intracoronary thrombus- Index of coronary flow- Mass of myocardium served- Collateral vasculature

Optimal injection rate: 7ml (2.1ml/s) for LCA and 4.8ml (1.7ml/s) for RCA

Pitfalls of CAG – A Lumenogram

Interpretation of the significance of a lumenogram

• Multiple projections from different angles, preferably orthogonal

• Knowledge of the normal calibre of major coronaries: LMCA: 4.5 ± 0.5 mm LAD: 3.7 ± 0.4 mm LCX : 3.5 ± 0.5 mm ( 4.2 mm if dominant) RCA: 3.9 ± 0.6 mm ( 2.8 mm if non-dominant)

• IVUS• Functional studies : FFR

Mistakes in CAG interpretation• Inadequate number of projections used• Improper/inadequate contrast injection• Super-selective injection• Catheter induced vasospasm• Coronary artery variations• Myocardial bridges• Total ostial occlusions• Wire induced spasm (ACCORDION EFFECT)

• LAO and RAO views help furnish the true PA and lateral views of the heart

D/A s - foreshortening - superimposition

• Cranial view: Image-intensifier tilted towards head• Caudal view: Image-intensifier tilted towards the feet

-however the optimal angiographic view varies with coronary anatomy, body habitus and location of lesion

Angiographic projections

Angiographic projections

Kern MJ. Cardiac Catheterization Handbook. 5th edition,2011.

RAO and LAO projections

Optimal angiographic views for coronary segments

Carlo Di Mario, Nilesh Sutaria. CORONARY ANGIOGRAPHY IN THE ANGIOPLASTY ERA: PROJECTIONS WITH A MEANING Heart 2005;91:968–976.

RAO- LCA

RAO- RCA

Shallow RAO cranial - LCA

AP cranial - LCA

RAO cranial - RCA


Carlo Di Mario, Nilesh Sutaria.CORONARY ANGIOGRAPHY IN THE ANGIOPLASTY ERA: PROJECTIONS WITH A MEANING Heart 2005;91:968–976.

RAO caudal - LCA

AP (Shallow RAO) caudal- LCA

LAO - LCA

LAO - RCA

LAO cranial - LCA

LAO cranial - RCA

LAO caudal (Spider view) - LCA

Lateral view

•Mid & distal LAD

•Proximal LCX

•Mid RCA

•LIMA graft to LAD



There is no single magical projection that can be applied uniformly to all patients for visualizing a particular coronary atery

Panoramic coronary angiography

GIORGIO TOMMASINI et al. Panoramic Coronary Angiography. JACC 31(4),March 15, 1998:871–7

References• Hurst’s The Heart 13th Edition • Braunwalds Heart Disease 9th edition• Grey’s Anatomy • Kern’s Handbook of Interventional Catheterization• Kjell C Nikus. Coronary angiography.• Grossman’s Textbook of Cardiac Catheterization• Carlo Di Mario, Nilesh Sutaria. CORONARY ANGIOGRAPHY IN THE ANGIOPLASTY

ERA: PROJECTIONS WITH A MEANING Heart 2005;91:968–976• David M Fiss. Normal coronary anatomy and anatomic variations. Applied

Radiology, Jan 2007.• Horia Muresian. Coronary arterial anomalies and variations. MAEDICA. A journal

of clinical Medicine,1(1), 2006.• Singh et al. The coronary venous anatomy. A segmental approach to aid CRT

2005, 46(1), 68-74. • Shilpa Bhimali et al. A STUDY OF VARIATIONS IN CORONARY ARTERIAL SYSTEM IN

CADAVERIC HUMAN HEART. World Journal of Science and Technology 2011, 1(5): 30-35 ISSN: 2231 – 2587.

Thank you

anatomy of the coronary arteries and veins

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