THE MORPHOLOGY OF EARLY MEANDERS OF THE GREAT SAPHENOUS VEIN.

Leg varices often show a peculiar and regular tortuosity, their course resembling the meander of river. The meanders of the great saphenous vein tend to start in certain regions, viz. at the levels of the union of a perforant with the superficial venous system. Knowledge of the underlying mechanism of such meandering of the veins is meagre, but as the course of such vessels seems to be approximations of sine-generated curves, the curves of minimum total loss of energy and hence induced by hemodynamic forces, a search for such a background may be rewarding. A morphologic study of early meanders and the neighboring vein compartments may yield valuable information about the hemodynamics involved. This paper reports an x-ray study of early meander formations of the great saphenous vein in the thigh and in the upper part of the lower leg. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]