Study liver anatomy and function with our medical students test. Engage with detailed multiple choice questions, each with hints and explanations. Prepare effectively for your test!

Multiple Choice

What type of walls do hepatic veins have?

The main idea is how vessel walls appear on ultrasound. Hepatic veins have very thin, low-reflective walls, so on B-mode imaging the lumen looks anechoic (dark) and the walls are not seen as bright structures. In other words, their walls are non-echogenic. This thin-walled, collapsible nature of hepatic veins makes their walls poorly reflective, unlike thicker, more reflective arterial walls. Doppler can be used to confirm venous flow, but the walls themselves typically don’t produce bright echoes.

The main idea is how vessel walls appear on ultrasound. Hepatic veins have very thin, low-reflective walls, so on B-mode imaging the lumen looks anechoic (dark) and the walls are not seen as bright structures. In other words, their walls are non-echogenic. This thin-walled, collapsible nature of hepatic veins makes their walls poorly reflective, unlike thicker, more reflective arterial walls. Doppler can be used to confirm venous flow, but the walls themselves typically don’t produce bright echoes.