Eponyms in Vascular Neurosurgery: Comprehensive Review of 18 Veins

Abstract

This review is the first comprehensive anatomic report of all venous eponyms used in vascular neurosurgery and provides the historical context of their authors as well as the surgical relevance of every structure. A PubMed literature review identified 13 individuals for whom 18 eponymous venous structures of the brain were named. These structures are the Batson plexus, veins of Breschet, Breschet sinus, vein of Dandy, vein of Galen, prosencephalic vein of Markowski, torcular Herophili, vein of Labbé, venous plexus of Rektorzik, vein of Rolando, basal vein of Rosenthal, sylvian veins, lateral lakes of Trolard, vein of Trolard, hypoglossal plexus of Trolard, petro-occipital vein of Trolard, venous circle of Trolard, and the vein of Vesalius. Eponyms provide a valuable shorthand that encompasses anatomic nuances, variabilities, and surgical relevance. In addition, they elucidate the historical context in which these structures were described and are an academic honor to our predecessors.

Keywords: Anatomy; Cerebrovascular; Eponym; History; Neurosurgery; Vein.