title: [On the characteristics of axillary veins and internal jugular veins in pediatric patients].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Axillary veins (AxV) are increasingly selected instead of the subclavian veins (SCV) for safe and successful catheterization in adults using ultrasound echo although quite rarely in children. The diameters and depths of the pediatric internal jugular veins (IJV) are well known but those of pediatric AxV are unfamiliar even to anesthesiologists. We evaluated the diameters and the depths of the AxV and IJV in children undergoing cardiac surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  The diameters and the depths of the AxV and IJV were measured using an ultrasound echo apparatus (TiTAN, SonoSite) in fifty pediatric patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patients' ages, heights, and weights averaged about 27.5 months, 77.3cm, and 9.8kg, respectively. The maximal widths, lengths and depths of the AxV and IJV were about 4.2, 3.3 and 10 mm and 7.5, 4.9 and 6.6 mm, respectively. The widths of the AxV and IJV correlated well with the patients' heights (r=0.831 and 0.700, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The diameters of the AxV are about 0.6 times and the depths are about 1.5 times those of the IJV and it seems difficult to use AxV for pediatric CVC from the standpoint of venous diameters and depths.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Kyushukoseinenkin Hospital, Kitakyushu 806-8501.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kayashima
authors.forename: Hiroomi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yoshino
authors.forename: Masaya
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ueki
authors.forename: Kazunori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kataoka
mesh_terms: D000768:Anesthesia, General; D001367:Axillary Vein / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D002405:Catheterization, Central Venous / Q000379:methods; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007601:Jugular Veins / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D008297:Male; D025321:Surgery, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D014463:Ultrasonography