Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2024 Aug 27;16(8):e67935.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.67935. eCollection 2024 Aug.

Persistent Left-Sided Superior Vena Cava: A Case Report

Matthew Hentges  1 , Karson Schroeder  1 , Aleesha Somani  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Persistent Left-Sided Superior Vena Cava: A Case Report

Matthew Hentges et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

A persistent left-sided superior vena cava (PLSVC) is the most common thoracic venous anomaly. However, it is still quite rare in the general population. PLSVC occurs during the embryological stages and is seen mostly in patients with congenital heart disease. Normally during development, the left anterior cardinal vein will regress and obliterate to form the ligament of Marshall. In cases of PLSVC, the left anterior cardinal vein persists and can become a persistent left superior vena cava (SVC). There are different anatomical variants of a left-sided SVC, most commonly presenting with both a right and a left SVC. In some PLSVC cases, there is an isolated left SVC. Though rare, this anomaly is not without clinical significance. This case report describes a 48-year-old male with incidental findings of isolated PLSVC seen on chest X-ray after the placement of a temporary dialysis catheter. This report will also describe the incidence/prevalence, embryological origin including anatomical variants, and clinical implications of PLSVC.

Keywords: anatomy and physiology; central line insertion; general and vascular surgery; persistent left-sided superior vena cava (plsvc); ultrasound-guided.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Human subjects: Consent was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. CT of the chest, 2020. Left-sided SVC dumping into the coronary sinus was noted. The aortic arch with the left common carotid can also be visualized.
SVC: superior vena cava
Figure 2
Figure 2. Chest X-ray, 2022. The temporary dialysis catheter was visualized descending down the left chest via a left-sided SVC dumping into the coronary sinus.
SVC: superior vena cava
Figure 3
Figure 3. Venous return developmental stages and embryological variations of PLSVC.
PLSVC: persistent left-sided superior vena cava
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Persistent left superior vena cava: clinical importance and differential diagnoses. Azizova A, Onder O, Arslan S, Ardali S, Hazirolan T. Insights Imaging. 2020;11:110. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Dilated coronary sinus: an indicator of persistent left superior vena cava. Otero D, Stoddard M, Ikram S. Asp Biomed Clin Case Rep. 2020;3:116–117.
    1. Persistent left superior vena cava in association with sinus venosus defect type of atrial septal defect and partial pulmonary venous return on 64-MDCT. [ Mar; 2023 ];Disha B, Prakashini K, Shetty RK. BMJ Case Rep. 2014 2014:0. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Developmental anomalies of the superior vena cava and its tributaries: what the radiologist needs to know? Verma M, Pandey NN, Ojha V, Kumar S, Ramakrishnan S. Br J Radiol. 2020;94:20200856. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Carvajal C, Goyal A, Tadi P. StatPearls [Internet] Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; [ Feb; 2023 ]. 2024. Cardioplegia. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources