The basivertebral veins are
vein
Veins are blood vessels in humans and most other animals that carry blood towards the heart. Most veins carry deoxygenated blood from the tissues back to the heart; exceptions are the pulmonary and umbilical veins, both of which carry oxygenat ...
s within the
vertebral column
The vertebral column, also known as the backbone or spine, is part of the axial skeleton. The vertebral column is the defining characteristic of a vertebrate in which the notochord (a flexible rod of uniform composition) found in all chordate ...
. They are contained in large, tortuous channels in the substance of the bones, similar in every respect to those found in the
diploë of the
cranial bones
In human anatomy, the neurocranium, also known as the braincase, brainpan, or brain-pan is the upper and back part of the skull, which forms a protective case around the brain. In the human skull, the neurocranium includes the calvaria or skul ...
.
They emerge from the
on the posterior surfaces of the
vertebral bodies
The spinal column, a defining synapomorphy shared by nearly all vertebrates,Hagfish are believed to have secondarily lost their spinal column is a moderately flexible series of vertebrae (singular vertebra), each constituting a characteristic ...
.
They communicate through small openings on the front and sides of the vertebral bodies with the
anterior external vertebral plexuses, and converge behind to the
principal canal, which is sometimes double toward its posterior part, and open by valved orifices into the transverse branches which unite the
anterior internal vertebral plexuses.
The basivertebral veins become greatly enlarged in advanced age.
References
External links
* - "Venous Drainage of th
Vertebral Column
Veins of the torso
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