Male Liver Superior Presentation of the Main Portal Fissure

Description

Viewed from superior over the hepatic dome, the main portal fissure (fissura portae principalis), classically aligned with Cantlie’s line (linea Cantliei), runs in a right sagittal plane to divide the liver into functional right and left hemilivers. Laterally, the right lobe occupies the larger portion of the diaphragmatic surface, while the left lobe tapers anteromedially toward the midline. The convex superior surface is implied as the diaphragmatic (phrenic) aspect, with the fissure crossing deep to the capsular contour rather than following an external lobar notch. Functional anatomy, not surface lobation. That distinction matters in the operating room and on cross sectional imaging. Cantlie’s line approximates the plane of the middle hepatic vein and separates portal inflow territories, so it is the reference used in Couinaud segmentation and in planning right or left hepatectomy, living donor grafts, and portal vein embolization strategies. Radiologists also lean on this plane when a mass appears to straddle the falciform ligament yet respects portal distributions, and surgeons track it when controlling inflow and outflow to limit ischemic injury. Use this illustration in hepatobiliary surgery chapters, anatomy teaching on functional liver segmentation, and imaging curricula that correlate sagittal and axial CT or MR with operative planes across the superior hepatic dome. It also fits patient education or informed consent materials where a clear distinction between anatomical lobes and functional hemilivers reduces confusion. Anatomical accuracy verified by SciePro's Medical Advisory Board.