The Intersaphenous Veins in the Leg: Anatomical Considerations.

The intersaphenous veins are inconstant veins interconnecting the great and the small saphenous veins. Due to the inclination of the superficial venous system to be rather inconsistent, this topic has never been described thoroughly and adequately before. The aim of our research was to observe intersaphenous veins and give a profound description of their variable anatomy.Sixty-three body donor limbs of Central European origin embalmed in formaldehyde were dissected. The tips of the medial and lateral malleoli were selected as suitable points of reference for measurements on the vertical axis of the leg. Additionally, each fibula was measured and related to the average length of the fibula in our examined sample. Consequently, each measurement was recalculated by this coefficient.Five types of arrangement were described: no connection (22.22%), one connection (46.03%), two connections (19.05%), three connections (11.11%), and four connections (1.59%). The average point of communication between the great saphenous vein and the intersaphenous vein was located 21.50 ± 9.64 cm proximal to the medial malleolus and between the small saphenous vein and the intersaphenous vein, 18.45 ± 6.05 cm proximal to the lateral malleolus. Multiple heatmaps were created for an easier comprehension of the topic.This research provides a detailed anatomy of intersaphenous veins of the leg. Yet variable in their arrangement, intersaphenous veins were found in the majority of investigated limbs. Thanks to their favorable anatomy, intersaphenous veins offer new alternatives to the traditional venous grafts from the saphenous veins, not only for heart bypasses.