Common hepatic duct
Ductus hepaticus communis
Also known as: CHD, right hepatic duct, left hepatic duct
The common hepatic duct is formed at the porta hepatis by the union of the right and left hepatic ducts. It runs down about 3–4 cm in the hepatoduodenal ligament until the cystic duct joins it to form the bile duct.
Overview
The right hepatic duct drains the functional right liver (segments V–VIII). The left hepatic duct drains segments II–IV, and the caudate lobe drains into both. They join just below the porta hepatis at the hilar confluence to form the common hepatic duct. This descends in the free edge of the lesser omentum (hepatoduodenal ligament), to the right of the hepatic artery proper and in front of the portal vein. It is joined on its right side, usually at an acute angle, by the cystic duct, and from that point it continues as the common bile duct.
The duct is lined by cholangiocytes. Under the influence of secretin (cAMP, CFTR and Cl⁻/HCO₃⁻ exchange) they add a bicarbonate-rich fluid to bile. Accessory or aberrant hepatic ducts are common. If they are unrecognised during cholecystectomy they can leak bile.
- Location
Porta hepatis down to the junction with the cystic duct, in the free edge of the lesser omentum.
Anatomy
- Arterial supply
Branches of the right hepatic and cystic arteries.
- Relations
Left: hepatic artery proper. Posterior: portal vein. The right hepatic artery usually passes behind it, and sometimes in front.
- Histology
Simple columnar epithelium (cholangiocytes) supported by fibrous connective tissue with scattered smooth muscle and peribiliary glands.
Function
- Drains bile from the whole liver.
- Ductular cholangiocytes modify bile (secretin-stimulated HCO₃⁻ and water).
Clinical significance
Hilar cholangiocarcinoma (Klatskin tumour)
Adenocarcinoma at the confluence of the hepatic ducts. Causes painless progressive obstructive jaundice with a non-palpable gallbladder. Primary sclerosing cholangitis is a risk factor.
Mirizzi syndrome and iatrogenic injury
A stone impacted in the cystic duct or Hartmann pouch can compress the common hepatic duct and cause obstructive jaundice (Mirizzi syndrome). The common hepatic duct and bile duct are the structures most at risk of injury in laparoscopic cholecystectomy.
Compiled from standard anatomy and physiology references — see the Digestive System sources. For education only; not medical advice.