Lateral Branch of Left Hepatic Duct
Ramus lateralis ductus hepatici sinistri
Read moreStructure/Morphology
The left hepatic duct is formed by the merging of lateral and medial branches and carries bile from the left liver.
Left segmental ducts that receive bile from segments II and III unite to form the lateral branch of the left hepatic duct.
Key Features/Anatomical Relations
Once the hepatic branches merge, the left hepatic duct becomes extrahepatic and runs along the inferior edge of liver segment IV for several centimeters. It is longer and more horizontally oriented than the right hepatic duct. It ends in the porta hepatis where it merges with the right hepatic duct to form the common hepatic duct (Standring, 2016).
Function
The branch of the left hepatic duct transmits bile from segments II and III of the left liver to the left hepatic duct and on to the common hepatic duct.
References
Standring, S. (2016) Gray's Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice. Gray's Anatomy Series 41 edn.: Elsevier Limited.
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Common Hepatic Duct
Although the confluence of the hepatic ducts is situated outside of the parenchyma of the liver, for convenience an intrahepatic bile duct is defined as any bile duct proximal to the confluence of the right and left hepatic ducts.
