Summary
Forty suprarenal glands were studied, 20 being dissected from aborted fetuses of 9 to 36 weeks' gestation and 20 obtained from human cadavers of ages 1 day to 60 years. All the specimens were from a Northern India population. The side and shape of each suprarenal gland was noted and documented. The length, breadth, thickness and volume of each gland were measured and tabulated in terms of age. The mean length, breadth and thickness in fetuses of 9–36 weeks were found to be 1.4 cm, 1 cm and 0.45 cm respectively. In the postnatal age group the measurements were 4.5 cm, 2.08 cm and 0.66 cm respectively. The commonest shape of the suprarenal glands on left side was semilunar but on the right side it was highly variable: triangular, tetrahedral, inverted Y or V shaped. On comparison of the gross measurements with available ultrasound and CT scan data it was found that both the length and thickness in the population studied were greater than reported in the literature. A knowledge of these variations is very important in diagnosis of abnormalities of the suprarenal gland, of which tumoral enlargement is rather common.
Résumé
40 glandes surrénales ont été étudiées. 20 glandes surrénales provenant de foetus de 9 à 36 semaines de gestation ont été disséqués. 20 autres glandes ont été obtenues à partir de sujets âgés de 1 jour à 60 ans. Tous les sujets sont issus d'une population de l'Inde du nord. Le côté et la configuration de chaque glande surrénale a été noté et documenté. La longueur, la largeur, l'épaisseur et le volume de chaque glande a été mesuré et classé en fonction de l'âge. La longueur moyenne, la largeur et les épaisseurs chez les foetus de neuf à 36 semaines ont été de 1,4 cm, 1 cm et 0,45 cm respectivement. Dans le groupe postnatal (1 jour à 60 ans), les mesures ont été de 4,5, 2,08 et 0,66 cm respectivement. Du côté gauche, la glande surrénale est le plus souvent de forme semi-lunaire et du côté droit la forme est très variable: triangulaire, tétraédrique, en forme de V ou de Y inversé. La comparaison des mesures anatomiques avec les données échographiques et scannographiques ont montré que les mesures de longueur et d'épaisseur dans la population étudiée étaient plus importantes que celles mentionnées dans la littérature. La connaissance de ces variations est importante pour diagnostiquer les anomalies des glandes surrénales qui sont fréquemment le siège de tumeurs et d'hypertrophies.
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Anand, M.K., Anand, C., Choudhry, R. et al. Morphology of human suprarenal glands: a parameter for comparison. Surg Radiol Anat 20, 345–349 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01630619
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01630619