Arterial vascularization and morphology of the thyroid glands in domestic geese

Abstract

The present work aimed to study the morphology of the thyroid glands and the arterial behavior of their arteries, emphasizing number, origin and ordination of the vases in 30 domestic geese (Anser tames domestica). The animQals were injected with Neoprene latex "450" red-faced with specific pigment through the sciatic artery and fixed in aqueous solution of formalin 10%. In the animals studied the thyroid glands are even, oval and, when fixed, they have red chestnut color. These glands are located in the cranial extremity of the thoraco-abdominal cavity, linked with the vague nerve, jugular vein and common carotid artery and their topography may be variable in each antimere. The thyroid glands have in average 0.97, 0.69 and 0.43 cm in right side and 1.04, 0.62 and 0,38 cm in left side, to length, width and thickness, respectively. The arteries responsible to emit colateral branches to thyroid glands are: common cutaneous carotid arteries, cervical cutaneous ascendant, esophageal tracheal bronchial, esophageal ascendant, common of the vague nerve ipsilaterally and also for the branch esophageal, being these last ones only happened for the right gland. The vases number varied from 1 to 5, being 2 vases (15 cases, 50% ± 10) for the right antimere and 3 vases (12 cases, 40% ± 9,8), the model more frequently observed. The cranial, cranial middle, middle, caudal middle and caudal thyroid arteries were present in the right side in 29, 8, 8, 14 e 29 geese respectively, and in the left side in 28, 5, 14, 5 e 28 geese respectively. This was a unique vessel to gland, the thyroid artery, in one animal to right and in two animals to left side.