Renal vein

The renal vein (Latin for, renal vein ') is a paired vein of the abdominal cavity to drain blood from the kidneys. Both renal veins are veins accompanying the renal artery and empty into the inferior vena cava ( vena cava inferior vena cava caudalis in animals ). The inferior vena cava with the two renal veins and the aorta with the two renal arteries form mutually offset crosses in which the veins cross located right below the arteries cross.

The left renal vein ( renal vein artery ) in humans is approximately 7.5 cm longer than the right ( renal vein artery ), which is only about 2.5 cm long. It also takes on even the blood of the left ovarian vein or vena testicularis.

Another feature of the left renal vein is that it is in a " vessel - pliers ": it lies in front of the abdominal aorta and behind the superior mesenteric artery. When arterial pressure increase, this can lead to a compression of the vein and thus to a drainage of the left kidney ( nutcracker syndrome).