Topography
Its convex diaphragmatic surface fits the dome of the diaphragm; its concave visceral surface touches the stomach on the left, the duodenum and pancreas on the right, and the right kidney, which sits in the renal fossa of the caudate process. The caudal vena cava runs along its dorsal border, and the portal vein, hepatic artery and bile duct enter and leave at the hilus (porta hepatis).
Lobes
- Left lateral and left medial lobes.
- Quadrate lobe, between the medial lobes, next to the gallbladder.
- Right medial and right lateral lobes.
- Caudate lobe, with the papillary process and the caudate process.
- Gallbladder (vesica fellea): between the quadrate and right medial lobes.
Clinical relevance
- Radiographic size: the normal caudoventral margin is sharp and barely passes the costal arch; hepatomegaly rounds the margin and pushes the stomach caudally.
- Microhepatia: typical of congenital portosystemic shunts.
- Chronic hepatitis: with copper accumulation in some breeds (Dobermann, Labrador, Bedlington terrier).
- Tumours: hepatocellular carcinoma is usually a single mass in one lobe, often the left lateral.
3D model
CT segmentation closed into a volume. The lobes and the gallbladder are not separated.