Correlation Between Coronary Artery Branching Pattern and Cardiac Dominance: A Cadaveric Anatomical Study

Background: Cardiac dominance and coronary artery branching pattern are important anatomical characteristics that influence myocardial blood supply and have significant implications during coronary angiography, percutaneous coronary intervention, and coronary artery bypass grafting. Understanding their relationship is essential for safe and effective cardiovascular procedures. The aim is to evaluate the correlation between the coronary artery branching pattern and cardiac dominance in adult human cadaveric hearts. Material and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional cadaveric study was conducted on 80 embalmed adult human hearts. The coronary arteries were dissected to determine the pattern of cardiac dominance, the branching pattern of the left coronary artery, and associated anatomical variations. Cardiac dominance was classified according to the origin of the posterior interventricular artery. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 26.0, and associations were assessed using the Chi-square test, with p < 0.05 considered statistically significant. Results: Right coronary dominance was observed in 64 (80.0%) specimens, followed by left dominance in 10 (12.5%) and co-dominance in 6 (7.5%) specimens. A significant association was found between the branching pattern of the left coronary artery and cardiac dominance (p = 0.041). Right dominance was most associated with bifurcation of the left coronary artery, whereas trifurcation was relatively more frequent in left-dominant hearts. Coronary artery variations were significantly more common in left- and co-dominant hearts than in right-dominant hearts (p = 0.032). Conclusion: Right coronary dominance was the predominant anatomical pattern in the present study. Significant correlations were observed between cardiac dominance, the branching pattern of the left coronary artery, and coronary artery variations. These findings provide clinically relevant anatomical information that may facilitate accurate interpretation of coronary imaging and improve the planning of coronary interventions and surgical revascularization.

Keywords: Coronary artery, Cardiac dominance, Coronary branching pattern, Left coronary artery, Cadaveric study, Coronary anatomy.