Intrarenal arteries of left kidney
Arteriae intrarenales renis sinistri
The branching tree of arteries inside the left kidney, from the segmental arteries at the hilum to the vessels feeding each glomerulus.
At a glance
- English
- Intrarenal arteries of left kidney
- Latin (TA2)
- Arteriae intrarenales renis sinistri
- System
- Artery
- Region
- Trunk
- Side
- Single, on the midline
About the intrarenal arteries of left kidney
The left renal artery leaves the side of the abdominal aorta just below the superior mesenteric artery and runs a short course to the left kidney, behind the left renal vein. Near or within the hilum it divides, and from that point on its branches are called the intrarenal arteries. They follow a fixed order that is the same in both kidneys.
The first division is into an anterior and a posterior branch, which pass in front of and behind the renal pelvis. These give the segmental arteries: the anterior branch usually supplies the apical, upper anterior, lower anterior and inferior segments, while the posterior branch supplies the posterior segment. Segmental arteries do not join one another, so each supplies its own wedge of kidney and blocking one causes a wedge-shaped infarct. Between the anterior and posterior territories there is a relatively bloodless plane that surgeons use when cutting into the kidney.
Within the renal sinus the segmental arteries give interlobar arteries, which run outwards between the renal pyramids in the renal columns. At the junction of cortex and medulla they bend over the bases of the pyramids as arcuate arteries. From these, interlobular (cortical radiate) arteries climb through the cortex and give the afferent arterioles of the glomeruli. Efferent arterioles leave each glomerulus to form the capillaries around the tubules, and those from the deepest glomeruli descend as the vasa recta of the medulla.
Through this tree the kidneys take roughly a fifth of the cardiac output. Extra renal arteries entering the poles directly are common, and on the left these are important in planning the removal of a kidney for transplantation, which is usually done on the left because its renal vein is longer.
Course and supply
- Arises from
- The left renal artery, at its division into anterior and posterior branches near the hilum of the left kidney.
- Ends in
- End as the afferent arterioles of the glomeruli, whose efferent vessels form the peritubular capillaries and the vasa recta.
- Supplies
- Distribute blood through the left kidney for filtration at the glomeruli and for the work of the tubules.
Anthromica
See the intrarenal arteries of left kidney where it really sits, with every layer of the body around it.
- Every layer, one body. Peel from muscle to bone, nerve, vessel and organ, and turn it any way.
- English and Latin. Every structure named the way your exam names it.
- Quiz until it sticks. Short drills on the structures you keep missing.
Free to start. No card.
