Question map
What is the name of the vessel that delivers the nutrient rich blood from the stomach and small intestine to the liver?
Explanation
The hepatic portal vein is the vessel that collects blood from the stomach, small intestine, and other abdominal organs and delivers this nutrient-rich, partially deoxygenated blood directly to the liver for metabolism and detoxification. The portal vein carries absorbed digestive products from the gastrointestinal tract to hepatic sinusoids, where hepatocytes process nutrients before blood enters the systemic circulation [1]. Anatomical and clinical sources describe the portal venous system as receiving drainage from the stomach and intestines and directing that nutrient-laden blood into the liver, distinguishing it from the hepatic arteries (which supply oxygenated blood) and the hepatic veins (which drain blood out of the liver) [2].
Sources
- [1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/hepatic-portal-vein
- [2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK554589/