Vena caval foramen
Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data
Citation:
Jones J, Weerakkody Y, Hacking C, et al. Vena caval foramen. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 22 Mar 2025) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-5767
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5767
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At the time the article was created Jeremy Jones had no recorded disclosures.
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At the time the article was last revised Yuranga Weerakkody had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Yuranga Weerakkody's current disclosures
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The vena caval foramen is one of the three major apertures in the diaphragm. It is the highest of the three and situated at the level of T8-9. It is quadrilateral and placed at the junction of the right and middle leaflets of the central tendon.
It transmits several structures between the thoracic and abdominal cavities.
- inferior vena cava
- branches of the right phrenic nerve
- note: left phrenic nerve directly pierces the dome of the left hemidiaphragm
The vertebral levels of the 3 main diaphragmatic apertures can be remembered by this mnemonic.
References
- 1. Standring S (editor). Gray's Anatomy (39th edition). Churchill Livingstone. (2011) ISBN:0443066841. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
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