Complete situs inversus: A variation in left-right asymmetry during embryogenesis

Abstract

Complete situs inversus is a very rare anomaly featured with the total inversion of all abdominal and thoracic organs. During the normal embryonic development laterality (left-right-sidedness) is featured by a cascade of signal molecules and genes. Any disturbance in the establishment of normal anatomical left- right asymmetry during this period results in left-right axis malformations which may express as complete situs inversus, incomplete situs inversus or situs ambiguous. A cadaver was detected with complete situs inversus during the routine dissection in the Anatomy Department of G.S.V.M. Medical College, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. The anomaly is very rare and may not be diagnosed until later in life when people seek medical attention because of unrelated medical problem and undergo radiographic investigation. The cadaver was carefully dissected. The literature was reviewed concerning the underlying cause of the anomaly during the embryonic period and the clinical implications of the condition. Special emphasis was given to the genetic cause of the condition. A literature search was performed in Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar databases, including studies published up to March 2016, with no lower data limit.