Variant Anatomy of Popliteal Vessels- A Cadaveric Study

Introduction: The popliteal fossa is a narrow intermuscular space posterior to knee joint. This area is vulnerable during knee arthroplasty or high tibial osteotomy. Therefore, awareness of anatomical variations in the popliteal fossa is important for anatomists, radiologists and surgeons. Popliteal Artery (PA) is frequently affected by penetrating and blunt trauma involving the lower extremity. Therefore, exposure of this artery is often required in both emergency and elective vascular procedures. The Popliteal Vein (PV) is formed at the distal border of popliteus. Pulmonary embolisms originate in deep vein thrombosis in lower extremities. The thrombus forms in the calf veins and subsequently embolize to the lungs. With continued increase of interventional procedures, the anatomical variations in the region of popliteal fossa may have an influence on the success of surgical reconstruction, transluminal angioplasty or embolectomy. Aim: To study the morphology and variations in popliteal vessels by dissection. Materials and Methods: The present study was a cadaveric study which was conducted on 30 lower limbs belonging to 15 formalin fixed adult human cadavers. Properly embalmed adult human cadavers were included in the study. Cadavers with any lower limb deformity or with history of surgery in popliteal fossa were excluded from the study. The data was entered in Microsoft excel sheet and expressed in percentage. Results: According to the classification given by Kim D et al., 96.6% cases were classified as Type IA. Higher bifurcation of PA into posterior tibial and common trunk of anterior tibial and peroneal was described as Type IIB. In addition, the PV was seen to be formed at the lower border of popliteus in 28 specimens (93.33%). Two specimens (6.67%) showed a variable level of formation. Conclusion: Considering such variable morphology of structures in the popliteal fossa, the surgeons operating around the knee joint should be aware of the possible variations in order to avoid undue complications.