Venae cordis minimae
Encyclopedia
The smallest cardiac veins or Thebesian veins are minute valveless vein
s in the walls of all four heart
chambers. They are most abundant in the right atrium
and least in the left ventricle
. They drain the myocardium and pass through the endocardial layer
to empty directly into the right atrium. The openings of the chambers are called the foramina venarum minimarum
.
The Thebesian venous network is considered an alternative (secondary) pathway of venous drainage of the myocardium.
It is named after German anatomist Adam Christian Thebesius
, who described them in a 1708 treatise called Disputatio medica inauguralis de circulo sanguinis in corde.
Vein
In the circulatory system, veins are blood vessels that carry blood towards the heart. Most veins carry deoxygenated blood from the tissues back to the heart; exceptions are the pulmonary and umbilical veins, both of which carry oxygenated blood to the heart...
s in the walls of all four heart
Heart
The heart is a myogenic muscular organ found in all animals with a circulatory system , that is responsible for pumping blood throughout the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions...
chambers. They are most abundant in the right atrium
Right atrium
The right atrium is one of four chambers in the hearts of mammals and archosaurs...
and least in the left ventricle
Left ventricle
The left ventricle is one of four chambers in the human heart. It receives oxygenated blood from the left atrium via the mitral valve, and pumps it into the aorta via the aortic valve.-Shape:...
. They drain the myocardium and pass through the endocardial layer
Endocardium
The endocardium is the innermost layer of tissue that lines the chambers of the heart. Its cells are embryologically and biologically similar to the endothelial cells that line blood vessels....
to empty directly into the right atrium. The openings of the chambers are called the foramina venarum minimarum
Foramina venarum minimarum
The foramina venarum minimarum are the orifices of minute veins , which return blood directly from the muscular substance of the heart....
.
The Thebesian venous network is considered an alternative (secondary) pathway of venous drainage of the myocardium.
It is named after German anatomist Adam Christian Thebesius
Adam Christian Thebesius
Adam Christian Thebesius was a German anatomist who was a native of Sandenwalde, Silesia. He studied medicine in Jena, Leipzig and Leiden, and received his doctorate from the University of Leiden in 1708...
, who described them in a 1708 treatise called Disputatio medica inauguralis de circulo sanguinis in corde.