Renal Veins: Developmental Variations and Clinical Significance

Introduction: In comparison with other organs, variants of blood supply to the kidneys were always at special attention. In many respects, the relevance of the topic can be explained by the presence of a large number of surgical and non-surgical procedures performed on this organ, the number of which continues to grow. Material and methods: The study was performed on 28 organ complexes (56 kidneys) obtained from patients of Moldavian origin, fixed in a 10% formalin solution and then carefully dissected. Results: In our study, we found one renal vein in 51 cases (90.1%). Accessory right renal vein was detected in 5 cases (9.9%). Late venous confluence was in seven cases (12.46%), and more often, this variant of venous outflow was seen on the right - 5 cases. We also had a rare case where the adrenal vein drained directly into the upper pole of the kidney (1.78%). In one case (1.78%) we found a left renal vein, which had a retroaortic location. We also found one case (1.78%) of an additional vein on the right and an additional artery on the left. In 20 cases (35.6%) the artery was located in front of the vein in the kidney sinus. Conclusions: The incidence of renal vein variations is relatively lower in Moldavian population compared to other studies. Data, provided in the article, can be used by specialists in urology, nephrology, vascular surgery, as well as in other surgical and therapeutic specialties