The anatomy of the septal perforating arteries in normal and congenitally malformed hearts.

BACKGROUND Many cardiac operations involve incisions and sutures on or near the ventricular septum. These jeopardize the septal perforating arteries. Our aim was to provide guidelines for the surgeon to predict the site of these vessels. METHODS AND RESULTS We dissected 50 hearts. In 16 of these we also conducted histologic examination of the area of the septum containing the atrioventricular node, the penetrating bundle (of His), and the branching atrioventricular bundle to elucidate the source of the vascular supply to these structures. The major perforating septal arteries arise from the superior interventricular artery or, in hearts with a rudimentary right ventricle, from the superior delimiting artery. The first is usually the largest. The location of this artery can be predicted relative to the position of the medial papillary muscle. In abnormal hearts, holes within the ventricular septum in the presence of a well-developed muscular outlet septum were found to deviate the path of the septal perforating arteries in a predictable manner. The triangular area bordered by the margin of the ventricular septal defect, the muscular outlet septum, and the medial papillary muscle is free of major perforating arteries. The histologic studies showed that the conduction tissues at the base of the ventricles tend to receive their blood supply from arteries arising from the inferior interventricular artery, except in double-inlet left ventricle, in which the arterial supply is from the right-sided delimiting artery. CONCLUSION The location of the first superior septal perforating artery is predictable in many cases. Its course leaves a triangular area on the muscular ventricular septum that is free of major arteries.