title: The Main Anatomic Variations of the Hepatic Artery and Their Importance in Surgical Practice: Review of the Literature.
abstract: Anatomical variations of the hepatic artery are important in the planning and performance of abdominal surgical procedures. Normal hepatic anatomy occurs in approximately 80% of cases, for the remaining 20% multiple variations have been described. The purpose of this study was to review the existing literature on the hepatic anatomy and to stress out its importance in surgical practice. Two main databases were searched for eligible articles during the period 2000 - 2015, and results concerning more than 19,000 patients were included in the study. The most common variation was the replaced right hepatic artery (type III according to Michels classification) which is the chief source of blood supply to the bile duct.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy of Medical School, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Noussios
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy of Medical School, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: Ioannis
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Dimitriou
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Agios Dimitrios General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: Iosif
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Chatzis
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Agios Dimitrios General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: Anastasios
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Katsourakis
keywords: Anatomic variation; Celiac trunk; Hepatic artery; Review; Surgical practice