Right renal vein

The right renal vein is a short, thick-walled venous trunk responsible for draining the right kidney and associated structures. It constitutes a crucial component of the renal vascular system, playing an essential role in the return of deoxygenated blood from the renal parenchyma to the caudal vena cava (vena cava caudalis).

General Topography and Course

In all domestic mammals, the right renal vein arises at the hilus of the right kidney, where it receives numerous intrarenal tributaries emerging from the interlobar and arcuate veins. From the renal hilus, the vein courses medially and slightly ventrally, passing a short distance to join the caudal vena cava, which lies dorsally and somewhat to the right of the midline in the sublumbar region.

Owing to the proximity of the right kidney to the caudal vena cava, the right renal vein is typically shorter than the left renal vein. This anatomical feature is more pronounced in species such as the dog, cat, and horse, in which the right kidney is cranially displaced and situated beneath the caudate process of the liver.

Relations

• Dorsally: The right renal vein is related to the right renal artery, which often lies dorsocranial to the vein. In some species, the renal artery may partially envelop the vein or give off accessory branches that pass anterior or posterior to it.

• Ventrally: It is covered by perirenal fat and, in ruminants and carnivores, may lie adjacent to the right adrenal gland or its associated vein.

• Laterally: Lies in close contact with the renal pelvis and ureter at its origin.

• Medially: Joins the caudal vena cava, usually at an oblique angle.