Wiktionary
n. (context anatomy English) A short, wide vein that carries blood to the liver from the organs of the digestive system.
WordNet
n. a short vein that carries blood into the liver [syn: hepatic portal vein, portal, vena portae]
Wikipedia
The portal vein or hepatic portal vein is a blood vessel that carries blood from the gastrointestinal tract and spleen to the liver. This blood is rich in nutrients that have been extracted from food, and the liver processes these nutrients; it also filters toxins that may have been ingested with the food. 75% of total liver blood flow is through the portal vein, with the remainder coming from the hepatic artery proper. The blood leaves the liver to the heart in the hepatic veins.
The portal vein is not a true vein, because it conducts blood to capillary beds in the liver and not directly to the heart. It is a major component of the hepatic portal system, one of only two portal venous systems in the body – with the hypophyseal portal system being the other.
The portal vein is usually formed by the confluence of the superior mesenteric and splenic veins and also receives blood from the inferior mesenteric, gastric, and cystic veins.
Conditions involving the portal vein cause considerable illness and death. An important example of such a condition is elevated blood pressure in the portal vein. This condition, called portal hypertension, is a major complication of cirrhosis.
Usage examples of "portal vein".
Jack didn't find any sutures in the portal vein, because that vessel was almost entirely obliterated.
Jack didnt find any sutures in the portal vein, because that vessel was almost entirely obliterated.
It had missed the abdominal aortahe would have bled to death otherwisebut it must have nicked either the left colic vein or some tributaries of the portal vein, because the blood loss was still grave.
Trying to clamp the left branch of the portal vein, I slipped, and the clamp closed tightly on a swollen cyst at the base of the liver, full of grey-white colon cells.
It was partly excised and examined, there's an incision just along the portal vein.
It was a lucky shot (or unlucky, depending on your point of view, I guess), hitting the portal vein and killing her.