Anastomosis

An anastomosis (plural anastomoses) is a connection or opening between two things (especially cavities or passages) that are normally diverging or branching, such as between blood vessels, leaf veins, or streams. Such a connection may be normal (such as the foramen ovale in a fetus's heart) or abnormal (such as the patent foramen ovale in an adult's heart); it may be acquired (such as an arteriovenous fistula) or innate (such as the arteriovenous shunt of a metarteriole); and it may be natural (such as the aforementioned examples) or artificial (such as a surgically created one, for example, ileorectal anastomosis as part of colectomy). The reestablishment of an anastomosis that had become blocked is called a reanastomosis. Anastomoses that are abnormal, whether congenital or acquired, are often called fistulas.

The term is used in medicine, biology, mycology, geology, geography and architecture.

Anastomosis: medical or Modern Latin, from Greek ἀναστόμωσις, anastomosis, "outlet, opening," Gr ana-" up, on, upon", stoma "mouth" , "to furnish with a mouth". Thus the -stom- syllable is cognate with that of stoma in botany or stoma in medicine.

An anastomosis is the connection of two normally divergent structures. It refers to connections between blood vessels or between other tubular structures such as loops of intestine.

In circulatory anastomoses, many arteries naturally anastomose with each other; for example, the inferior epigastric artery and superior epigastric artery, or the anterior and/or posterior communicating arteries in the Circle of Willis in the brain. The circulatory anastomosis is further divided into arterial and venous anastomosis. Arterial anastomosis includes actual arterial anastomosis (e.g., palmar arch, plantar arch) and potential arterial anastomosis (e.g. coronary arteries and cortical branch of cerebral arteries). Anastomoses also form alternative routes around capillary beds in areas that don't need a large blood supply, thus helping regulate systemic blood flow.

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