Background and objective.

Venous congestion is the main resource of complication in microsurgical breast reconstruction. Among the possible causes of this congestion, the characteristics of the recipient vessels are of special interest. Internal mammary veins are the first choice as recipient vessels.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the possible differences between the left and right internal mammary veins.

Methods.

Observational research conducted on 31 cases of breast reconstruction with DIEP flap (deep inferior epigastric perforator flap), selecting the internal mammary vessels as recipient vessels in order to compare possible differences between the caliber of right and left internal mammary veins.

Results.

The result were statistically significant, showing a larger caliber of the right internal mammary vein than the left.

Conclusions.

Our study has found statistically significant differences in the caliber of the internal mammary veins, with the right ones being larger without these results being modified using radio-therapy prior to surgery or by the patients own conditions, such as her body mass index or age.

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