Cardiovascular system · Abdomen
Right renal vein !
The right renal vein drains blood from the right kidney; it is very short and enters the inferior vena cava directly.
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What it is
A short vein running straight from the right kidney into the inferior vena cava.
What it does
Drains the right kidney. (The right gonadal vein goes directly to the vena cava instead.)
Key facts
- Drains
- Right kidney (the right gonadal and suprarenal veins go straight to the IVC instead)
- Into
- IVC at about L1–L2; short, in front of the right renal artery
Relations
- Course
- From the hilum it runs a short way medially and slightly up to enter the right side of the inferior vena cava
- In front
- Second part of the duodenum and, nearer the vena cava, the head of the pancreas
- Behind
- Right renal artery
How to find it
Not palpable. At surgery it is found at the side of the inferior vena cava, short and in front of the right renal artery; in right nephrectomy it is controlled right at the cava, sometimes with a side clamp on the cava itself.
On imaging
Doppler ultrasound, CT or MRI show the vein and whether tumour or clot fills it; MRI and CT also show how far a tumour thrombus climbs in the inferior vena cava (below, behind or above the liver, or into the right atrium).
Clinical notes
- Tumour thrombus from renal cell carcinoma is graded by how high it reaches in the vena cava, which decides whether the liver or heart has to be approached
- In right donor nephrectomy a cuff of vena cava may be taken to lengthen the short vein
- Renal vein thrombosis is linked to nephrotic syndrome, classically membranous nephropathy
Anatomical variants
- Two or more right renal veins are more common than on the left
Development
The inferior vena cava is built from right-sided embryonic veins (subcardinal and cardinal systems) and ends up beside the right kidney, so the right renal vein stays short while the left one has to cross the aorta.
Related conditions
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
Why is the right kidney less often taken from living donors?
The right renal vein is very short and runs straight into the inferior vena cava, making the transplant harder; a cuff of vena cava may be taken to lengthen it.
Which right-sided veins drain straight into the inferior vena cava instead of the right renal vein?
The right gonadal and right suprarenal veins.
How is a renal cell carcinoma tumour thrombus in the vena cava graded?
By how high it reaches in the inferior vena cava (below, behind or above the liver, or into the right atrium), which decides whether the liver or heart must be approached.
Which condition is classically linked to renal vein thrombosis?
Nephrotic syndrome, classically membranous nephropathy.
Educational information, not medical advice. For any symptom, see a health professional.
Its names
- Official Latin (TA2)
- vena renalis dextra; vena renalis sinistra TA2 5000
- Official Spanish (DeCS)
- Venas renales DeCS D012082
- English (TA2)
- Right renal vein
- Also called
- renal veins
Related
Sources: Terminologia Anatomica (TA2); DeCS; Anatomy, Abdomen and Pelvis, Renal Veins; Anatomy of the Human Body (20th ed.): Development of the Vascular System (Lea & Febiger (Gray's Anatomy, 1918), 1918) · adapted, Public domain; 20.5 Circulatory Pathways (OpenStax (Rice University), 2022) · adapted, CC BY 4.0.
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.