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Various congenital anomalies of the inferior vena cava: review of cross-sectional imaging findings and report of a new variant

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Abstract

The inferior vena cava (IVC) is an important structure receiving a large amount of venous return and is associated with various congenital disorders. Advances in diagnostic imaging and its increasing accessibility have led to an increase in the incidental detection of IVC anomalies. Congenital anomalies of the IVC are not uncommon and are occasionally critical to treatment planning. However, they are frequently overlooked in abdominal imaging. The IVC is composed of four segments (intrahepatic, suprarenal, renal, and infrarenal), and each segment arises from different embryonic structures in a complex process. Anomalies of the IVC can be classified according to the involved segment. Familiarity with the variety of IVC anomalies seen on imaging is vital for correctly diagnosing and managing patients in daily practice.

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Abbreviations

IVC:

Inferior vena cava

CT:

Computed tomography

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Soonchunhyang University College of Medicine, Cheonan Hospital 31 Soonchunhyang6-gil, Dongnam-gu, Cheonan-si,, Chungcheongnam-do, 330-721, Republic of Korea

    Seung Soo Kim, Hyeong Cheol Shin, Jeong Ah Hwang, Sung Shick Jou, Woong Hee Lee & Chan Ho Park

  2. Department of Radiology, Soonchunhyang University College of Medicine, Bucheon Hospital, Bucheon, Republic of Korea

    Seo-Youn Choi

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  1. Seung Soo Kim
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Correspondence to Hyeong Cheol Shin.

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Funding

This work was supported by Soonchunhyang University Research Fund.

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The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors. For this type of study, formal consent was not required.

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Statements of informed consent were not applicable because the manuscript contains no patient data.

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Kim, S.S., Shin, H.C., Hwang, J.A. et al. Various congenital anomalies of the inferior vena cava: review of cross-sectional imaging findings and report of a new variant. Abdom Radiol 43, 2130–2149 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00261-017-1430-y

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