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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Journal of Fetal Medicine
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1814390
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Trifurcation of Right Portal Vein: A Rare Anatomic Variation

Authors

  • Nisha Suresh 

    1   Department of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, CIMAR—The Women's Hospital, Kochi, Kerala, India

  • Bijoy K. Balakrishnan 

    1   Department of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, CIMAR—The Women's Hospital, Kochi, Kerala, India

  • Meenu Batra

    1   Department of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, CIMAR—The Women's Hospital, Kochi, Kerala, India

  • Kannoly K. Gopinathan

    2   Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, CIMAR - Edappal Hospitals, Edappal, Kerala, India
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Abstract

The portal sinus is the crossing point of three vessels: The umbilical vein and the left and right portal branches. The main portal vein gives rise to the right and left portal veins. Normally, on the right side, the right portal vein (RPV) is further divided into anterior and posterior branches that supply the posterior–inferior and posterior–superior Couinaud's segments 6 and 7, and an anterior branch that supplies the anterior–inferior and anterior–superior segments. On the left lobe, the lateral segment (Couinaud's segment 2) is supplied by the left portal vein (LPVs), and the Left Portal Vein inferior branch (LPVi) supplies the left (para)median (Couinaud's segment 3). On the right side of the umbilicoportal tract, the Left Portal Vein medial branch (LPVm) supplies the right (para)median segment (Couinaud's segment 4).


Keywords

portal sinus - portal system - right portal vein - trifurcation of right portal vein

Variation of Right Portal Vein Anatomy

Normally, the umbilical vein courses in a cephalad direction and enters the liver, where it connects with the portal system. In the left intersegmental fissure of the liver, it joins the left portal vein, which then courses abruptly to the right, creating the L-shaped segment known as the portal sinus. The main portal vein enters the liver from the left. The site of connection of the main portal vein to the portal sinus represents the anatomical point of division between its right and left branches.

The right portal vein bifurcates into two major branches: The anterior and posterior branches ([Fig. 1] and [Supplementary Fig. S1]), available in the online version. In this image, we can see an anatomic variation of the right portal vein. In this, right portal vein is trifurcating, that is, it is dividing into three branches.

The left portal vein divides into three branches: The left superior, the left inferior, and the left median branch.

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Fig. 1 Three branches of the right portal vein. ARPV, anterior right portal vein; MRPV, middle right portal vein; PRPV, posterior right portal vein.


Supplementary Material


Address for correspondence

Nisha Suresh, MBBS, MS, DNB, OBG
Department of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, CIMAR—The Women's Hospital
Kochi, Kerala
India   

Publication History

Article published online:
09 January 2026

© 2026. Society of Fetal Medicine. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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Zoom
Fig. 1 Three branches of the right portal vein. ARPV, anterior right portal vein; MRPV, middle right portal vein; PRPV, posterior right portal vein.