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Venous drainage of the soleus muscle

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Abstract

Soleus veins have been implicated as the site for deep venous thrombosis initiation. Detailed anatomic knowledge is required for the early diagnosis using non-invasive ultrasound techniques. In the present work, we describe the anatomy of the veins that emerge from the ventral face of the soleus muscle. Twenty-eight soleus muscles were dissected and 543 veins were found. The number of veins per leg ranged from 7 to 38. The distribution of these veins per quadrant ranged from 0 to 12. The greatest number of veins occurred at the superior lateral quadrant. Most soleus veins mainly drained into the posterior tibial and fibular veins. The mean length of the soleus veins ranged from 0.907 to 2.804 cm. We conclude that there is a wide variability in the distribution of soleus veins through the soleus muscle and their quadrants. The majority of the soleus veins drain into the tibial and fibular veins.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Morphology and Structural Biology Laboratory, Institute of Technology and Research, Tiradentes University, Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil

    Francisco Prado Reis, José Aderval Aragão & Marco Antonio Prado Nunes

  2. Department of Experimental Surgery, Federal University of São Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Luis Francisco Poli de Figueiredo

  3. Department of Morphology, Federal University of Sergipe, Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil

    José Aderval Aragão & Vera Lúcia Corrêa Feitosa

  4. Department of Vascular Surgery, Federal University of São Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Fausto Miranda Jr

  5. Rua Silvio César Leite, 301, Apt 1203, Bairro Salgado Filho, Aracaju, Sergipe, CEP 49020-060, Brazil

    Francisco Prado Reis

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  1. Francisco Prado Reis
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  2. José Aderval Aragão
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  3. Luis Francisco Poli de Figueiredo
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  4. Fausto Miranda Jr
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  5. Marco Antonio Prado Nunes
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  6. Vera Lúcia Corrêa Feitosa
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Correspondence to Francisco Prado Reis.

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Reis, F.P., Aragão, J.A., de Figueiredo, L.F.P. et al. Venous drainage of the soleus muscle. Surg Radiol Anat 30, 341–345 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-008-0333-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00276-008-0333-6

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