The coronary vascular system and associated anatomical features

Even as recent as several hundred years ago, the general function of the coronary vascular system was largely unknown. Today, it is well established that the coronary system is a highly variable network of both arteries supplying and veins draining the myocardium of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood. Due to recent advances in therapeutic technologies, the coronary vascular system has been utilized as a conduit in a variety of biomedical applications, e.g., cardiac resynchronization therapy, valve repair, and/or drug delivery. Additionally, symptomatic diseases such as coronary artery disease can be alleviated with percutaneous intervention or coronary artery bypass grafts. It is well accepted that a comprehensive understanding of the geometric anatomical characteristics of the coronary system will allow for medical devices to be engineered to deliver novel therapies more successfully to a greater variety of cardiac patients.