The coronary sulcus is the external groove around the heart at the boundary between its atria and ventricles. It provides a route for parts of the right coronary artery, circumflex artery, great cardiac vein and coronary sinus.[ref]
Anatomy and Physiology 2e by J. Gordon Betts and others. §19.1, External Anatomy and Coronary Circulation
An anatomical route can be reconstructed from connected landmarks: the great cardiac vein runs from the anterior interventricular sulcus into the coronary sulcus and toward the coronary sinus. The turn distinguishes a vessel following the atrial–ventricular boundary from one continuing toward the cardiac apex. This is useful when relating an anterior view to a posterior view of the same specimen.
The groove should not be treated as a rigid pipe carrying all of these vessels in one fixed order. In a primary dissection series, the great cardiac vein's relationship to the neighboring arteries differed among specimens.[ref]
The anatomy of the coronary sinus and its tributaries by J. R. Ortale and others. Abstract, relationships within the coronary sulcus
A diagram can therefore correctly show the main route while suppressing variation in crossings and spacing. The coronary sulcus describes surface geography; identifying a particular artery or vein still requires tracing its connections. Articles by others on the same topic
There are currently no matching articles.