Hepatocystic triangle

Changed by Daniel J Bell, 8 Apr 2019

Updates to Article Attributes

Body was changed:

Show markup changes

Calot triangle is a small (potential) triangular space at the porta hepatis of surgical importance as it is dissected during cholecystectomy. Its contents, the cystic artery and cystic duct must be identified before ligation and division to avoid damaging them during the operation.

Gross anatomy

Boundaries

The (isosceles) triangle is positioned so that the apex points towards the liver with the boundaries:

right: the cystic duct which is often tortuous and has a beaded appearance, passes downward and to the left to join the common duct
left: common hepatic duct
superior: the inferior surface of the liver (in the original description by Calot the cystic artery is defined as the superior margin)

right hepatic artery
cystic artery
cystic lymph node (of Lund)
connective tissue
lymphatics
occasionally accessory hepatic ducts and arteries

History and etymology

This space was first described by the French surgeon, Jean-François Calot (1861–1944) ³ in 1891, as part of his PhD thesis; although the space as described by Calot differs slightly from the modern description ⁴.

-<p><strong>Calot triangle </strong>is a small (potential) triangular space at the <a href="/articles/porta-hepatis">porta hepatis</a> of surgical importance as it is dissected during cholecystectomy. Its contents, the <a href="/articles/cystic-artery">cystic artery</a> and <a href="/articles/cystic-duct">cystic duct</a> must be identified before ligation and division to avoid damaging them during the operation.</p><h4>Gross anatomy</h4><h5>Boundaries</h5><p>The triangle is positioned so the apex points towards the liver with the boundaries:</p><ul>
+<p><strong>Calot triangle </strong>is a small (potential) triangular space at the <a href="/articles/porta-hepatis">porta hepatis</a> of surgical importance as it is dissected during cholecystectomy. Its contents, the <a href="/articles/cystic-artery">cystic artery</a> and <a href="/articles/cystic-duct">cystic duct</a> must be identified before ligation and division to avoid damaging them during the operation.</p><h4>Gross anatomy</h4><h5>Boundaries</h5><p>The (isosceles) triangle is positioned so that the apex points towards the liver with the boundaries:</p><ul>
~~-<li>cystic lymph node (of Lund)</li>~~
+<li><a href="/articles/cystic-lymph-node-of-lund">cystic lymph node (of Lund)</a></li>
~~-</ul>~~
+</ul><h4>History and etymology</h4><p>This space was first described by the French surgeon, <strong>Jean-François Calot</strong> (1861–1944) <sup>3</sup> in 1891, as part of his PhD thesis; although the space as described by Calot differs slightly from the modern description <sup>4</sup>. </p>

References changed:

2. Haubrich W. Calot of the Triangle of Calot. Gastroenterology. 2002;123(5):1440. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1053/gast.2002.1231440">doi:10.1053/gast.2002.1231440</a> - <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12404217">Pubmed</a>
3. Abdalla S, Pierre S, Ellis H. Calot's Triangle. Clin Anat. 2013;26(4):493-501. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ca.22170">doi:10.1002/ca.22170</a> - <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23519829">Pubmed</a>

Tags changed: