Ductus venosus

Vein: Ductus venosus
Fetal circulation. The ductus venosus (red) connects the umbilical vein to the inferior vena cava.
The liver and the veins in connection with it, of a human embryo, twenty-four or twenty-five days old, as seen from the ventral surface.
Gray's	subject #139 540
Source	umbilical vein
Drains to	inferior vena cava
Artery	ductus arteriosus
Dorlands/Elsevier	d_29/12315175

In the fetus, ductus venosus shunts a significant majority (80%) of the blood flow of the umbilical vein directly to the inferior vena cava. Thus, it allows oxygenated blood from the placenta to bypass the liver. In conjunction with the other fetal shunts, the foramen ovale and ductus arteriosus, it plays a critical role in preferentially shunting oxygenated blood to the fetal brain.

Ductus venosus is open at the time of the birth and is the reason why umbilical vein catheterization works. Ductus venosus naturally closes during the first week of life in most full-term neonates; however, it may take much longer to close in pre-term neonates. Functional closure occurs within minutes of birth. Structural closure in term babies occurs within 3 to 7 days.

After it closes, the remnant is known as ligamentum venosum.

See also

• Ligamentum venosum

External links

• 678101050 at GPnotebook - Ductus venosus (embryology)

Prenatal development/Mammalian development of circulatory system
Vascular	Blood island arteries: Dorsal aorta - Aortic arches - Vitelline arteries - Ductus arteriosus - Umbilical artery veins: Cardinal veins - Ducts of Cuvier - Vitelline veins - Ductus venosus - Umbilical vein
Heart development	Primitive heart tube: Truncus arteriosus - Bulbus cordis - Primitive ventricle - Primitive atrium - Sinus venosus Septum primum (Ostium primum, Ostium secundum) - Septum secundum (Foramen ovale) - other septa (Endocardial cushions/Septum intermedium, Aorticopulmonary septum) - Atrial canal

[hide] Veins of the torso
Coronary	coronary sinus (great cardiac, left marginal, small cardiac, middle cardiac, posterior of the left ventricle, oblique of the left atrium) • anterior cardiac (right marginal) • pulmonary
Thorax/ SVC	brachiocephalic: internal thoracic (anterior intercostal, superior epigastric) - left superior intercostal - supreme - vertebral - subclavian (axillary: lateral thoracic, thoracoepigastric, dorsal scapular) - pericardiacophrenic azygos: right superior intercostal - bronchial - intercostal/posterior intercostal 5-11 - accessory hemiazygos/hemiazygos - superior phrenic
Vertebral column	vertebral venous plexuses (external, internal) • spinal (posterior, anterior) • basivertebral • intervertebral
Abdomen/ IVC	to IVC (some to renal vein on left): inferior phrenic - hepatic - suprarenal - renal - gonadal (ovarian ♀/testicular ♂, pampiniform plexus ♂) - lumbar - common iliac to azygos system: ascending lumbar (subcostal)
Pelvis/common iliac	median sacral vein external iliac: inferior epigastric - deep circumflex iliac vein internal iliac - posterior: iliolumbar - superior gluteal - lateral sacral internal iliac - anterior: inferior gluteal - obturator - uterine ♀ (uterine plexus ♀) - vesical (vesical plexus, prostatic plexus ♂, deep of penis ♂/clitoris ♀, posterior scrotal ♂/labial ♀) - vaginal plexus/vein ♀ - middle rectal - internal pudendal (inferior rectal, bulb of penis ♂/vestibule ♀) - rectal plexus
Portal system/ portal vein	splenic: short gastric - left gastroepiploic - pancreatic - inferior mesenteric (superior rectal, left colic) superior mesenteric: right gastroepiploic - pancreaticoduodenal - jejunal - ileal - middle colic - right colic - ileocolic (appendicular) direct (cystic, left gastric/esophageal, right gastric, paraumbilical)
fetal	ductus venosus • umbilical