Unusual Course of Posterior Intercostal Vein at the 3rd Intercostal Space – A Case Report

Abstract

The posterior intercostal veins drain the thoracic wall and lie in the costal grooves along with the intercostal arteries and nerves posterior to the thoracic sympathetic chain. During routine dissection of the posterior mediastinum of a formalin-fixed male cadaver in the Anatomy department of an undergraduate and postgraduate teaching medical college in India, a large-sized posterior intercostal vein was identified crossing anterior to the thoracic sympathetic chain at the level of the 3rd intercostal space on the right side. The presence of such variation may hinder the surgical procedure of the posterior mediastinum and will pose an increased risk of intraoperative or postoperative bleeding. Knowledge of such variation is necessary to avoid laceration of the posterior intercostal vein, which is the potential cause of bleeding in the region of the thorax.