Anatomic variation of the pulmonary lobulation: cadaveric study

Abstract

Introduction: Surgeons must be aware of anatomical variations of the lung during lobar or segmental resections of the
lung. Knowledge of these variations prevents misinterpretation of radiological images when these variations occur. Objective: To
investigate the incidence of anatomical variations in the pattern of lobes and pulmonary fissures in human cadavers. Method: Seventytwo
human lungs were selected from the collection of cadaver parts of the Department of Anatomy at UFPE. In each cadaveric human
lung was analyzed: antimeria (right and left), the presence of fissures and pulmonary lobes. Results: Of the 72 human lungs selected, 35
were right lungs and 37 left lungs. After analyzing the left lungs, there were no anatomical variations in terms of pulmonary lobulation
or pulmonary fissures. In the analysis of the right lungs, two variations were observed in different lungs. In the first case, the horizontal
cleft was not observed and the lung thus presented only two pulmonary lobes, while in the second case the lung presented an incomplete
horizontal cleft. In the other lungs on the right side, anatomical variations were not observed regarding the lobes and pulmonary
fissures. Conclusion: Two anatomical variations were observed in the lobar pattern and pulmonary fissures in the right lung,
corresponding to an incidence of 5.4%, and no variations were found in the left lungs.