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Prevalence of Galen’s anastomosis: an anatomical and comparative study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 March 2006

Julio C. Furlan
Affiliation:
Department of Surgery, Clinical Hospital of the Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
Lenine G. Brandão
Affiliation:
Department of Surgery, Clinical Hospital of the Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
Alberto R. Ferraz
Affiliation:
Department of Surgery, Clinical Hospital of the Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.

Abstract

An anatomical study of 50 fresh adult human cadavers was performed in order to verify prevalence of Galen’s anastomosis (GA) and to evaluate whether factors such as gender, ethnicity, side of the neck, and individual stature may interfere with GA prevalence. The results were analysed using the Chi-square test, Student t-test, and F-Snedecor test. GA was observed in 87 of 100 dissections. There was no statistically significant difference regarding GA prevalence between groups separated by ethnicity (p = 0.853), gender (p = 0.198), side of the neck (p = 0.766), or individual height (p = 0.199). Therefore, the GA was a frequent anatomical finding, and this result was not influenced by any studied factor. Comparing our data with previous studies, we also concluded that the GA seems to play an important role in the innervation of the larynx, even though its function remains unclear. Also, it is reasonable to consider GA a constant anatomical constituent.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© Royal Society of Medicine Press Limited 2002

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