Ovarian vein

Ovarian vein
Ovarian vein
	Ovary of a sheep. ovary ; tertiary follicle ; proper ovarial ligament ; oviduct ; A. and V. ovarica;
Details
Drains from	Ovary
Drains to	Inferior vena cava ; left renal vein
Artery	Ovarian artery
Identifiers
Latin	vena ovarica sinistra, vena ovarica dextra
TA98	A12.3.09.012F ; A12.3.09.014F
TA2	5014, 5017
FMA	14346
	Anatomical terminology [ edit on Wikidata]

Last updated October 13, 2025

The ovarian vein, the female gonadal vein, carries deoxygenated blood from its corresponding ovary to inferior vena cava or one of its tributaries. It is the female equivalent of the testicular vein, and is the venous counterpart of the ovarian artery. It can be found in the suspensory ligament of the ovary.^[1]

Structure

It is a paired vein, each one supplying an ovary.

The right ovarian vein travels through the suspensatory ligament of the ovary and generally joins the inferior vena cava.
The left ovarian vein, unlike the right, often joins the left renal vein instead of the inferior vena cava.^[2]^[3]

Pathology

Thrombosis of ovarian vein is associated with postpartum endometritis, pelvic inflammatory disease, diverticulitis, appendicitis, and gynecologic surgery.

Additional images

Uterus and right broad ligament, seen from behind.

References

↑ II, Anne M.R. Agur, Arthur F. Dalley (2009). Grant's atlas of anatomy. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 978-0-7817-9604-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ Lampmann, LE; Smeets, AJ; Lohle, PN (2003). "Uterine fibroids: targeted embolization, an update on technique". Abdom Imaging. 29: 128–31. doi:10.1007/s00261-003-0086-y. PMID 15160767.
↑ Drake, Richard L.; Vogl, Wayne; Tibbitts, Adam W.M. Mitchell; illustrations by Richard; Richardson, Paul (2005). Gray's anatomy for students (Pbk. ed.). Philadelphia: Elsevier/Churchill Livingstone. ISBN 978-0-443-06612-2.

External links

Anatomy photo:40:13-0103 at the SUNY Downstate Medical Center - "Posterior Abdominal Wall: Tributaries to the Inferior Vena Cava"

This cardiovascular system article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] II, Anne M.R. Agur, Arthur F. Dalley (2009). Grant's atlas of anatomy. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 978-0-7817-9604-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[2] Lampmann, LE; Smeets, AJ; Lohle, PN (2003). "Uterine fibroids: targeted embolization, an update on technique". Abdom Imaging. 29: 128–31. doi:10.1007/s00261-003-0086-y. PMID 15160767.

[GRAYS2005-3] Drake, Richard L.; Vogl, Wayne; Tibbitts, Adam W.M. Mitchell; illustrations by Richard; Richardson, Paul (2005). Gray's anatomy for students (Pbk. ed.). Philadelphia: Elsevier/Churchill Livingstone. ISBN 978-0-443-06612-2.

[1]

[2]

[3]