Perforator vein

Perforating veins (singular vein perforating, Latin for " piercing blood vein"; transfasziale vein) is in the human anatomy, the term for those veins that connect the superficial to the deep venous system. There are about 150 such veins on each leg. In animal anatomy this term for the transfascial veins is not common. Here the term is perforating veins of the chest wall by drilling branches of the internal thoracic vein.

Anatomy of the leg veins in humans

In the area of the legs is anatomically distinguished between three venous systems:

The vast majority of the venous return to the heart is done via the deep leg veins. The smaller vessels run ( comitantes veins ) and accompanying veins with the arteries between the muscles. One of the great vessels include the popliteal vein (see also popliteal artery ), anterior tibial veins (see also anterior tibial artery ), posterior (see also the posterior tibial artery ) and the femoral vein.

A lesser portion of the venous return via the superficial veins of the legs. These veins run in contrast to the deep veins of the legs independently to the arteries of the leg, in subcutaneous adipose tissue outside the muscle, ie they are epifascially. They consist of a number of large vessels and surface spreading venous networks. The catchment area of the superficial leg veins is the skin. The following vessels form the superficial venous system:

• Saphenous vein
• Veins star
• External pudendal veins
• Vena superficial circumflex iliac
• Superficial epigastric vein
• Saphenous vein
• Inconsistent and the saphenous vein accessoria

The third system are the perforating veins that connect the superficial and the deep veins of the legs together. As described above, the deep or the superficial venous system in the course differ to the muscles, the perforating veins must penetrate the muscle fascia to connect. Overall, three major groups of perforating veins can be distinguished:

• Cockett the vein of the inner side of the leg
• Boyd vein on the inside of the lower leg below the knee
• Doddsche the perforating veins, located above the knee on the inner thigh

In healthy people, the blood always flows in the perforating veins in only one direction, from the superficial veins into the deep veins of the legs.