A Preliminary Study on Anatomy of the Main Trunk of Left Coronary Artery in Sri Lankans

Abstract: Morphological and morphometrical anatomy of coronary arteries remain to be of interest because of the high morbidity and mortality associated with coronary artery disease and due to recent advances in cardiac surgery, coronary angiography and angioplasty. The clinical impression of the diameter of coronary arteries to be smaller in Asians compared to Caucasians influence the likelihood of increase prevalence of coronary artery disease among Asians. We have investigated the morphology and morphometry of main trunk of left coronary artery (LMT). Forty adult fresh (postmortem carried out within 24 hours of death) adult human hearts of Sri Lankans were obtained at autopsies with no history of coronary artery disease or other heart disease. The aortic valve was opened to identify the location of the left coronary artery ostium. The main trunk of left coronary artery was exposed under 5X magnification using a dissecting microscope. The length of the LMT was measured with a vernier caliper and the number of its terminal branches and the branching pattern was studied. Luminal diameter of the trunk was taken at its midpoint using stereomicroscope. In all hearts the left coronary artery originated in the left coronary sinus and in majority of cases (31/40) the arterial orifice was below the supravalvular ridge. With regard to the type of division of LMT, it was absent in one case where anterior interventricular and circumfle