Macroscopic and histological examination of human bridging veins.

In infantile abusive head injury (AHT), subdural haemorrhage (SDH) is commonly held to result from traumatic damage to bridging veins traversing from the surface of the brain to the dura and dural venous sinuses. However, there are limited published radiological or autopsy demonstrations of ruptured bridging veins and several authors also assert that bridging veins are too large to rupture due to the forces associated with AHT. There have been several studies on the size, locations and numbers of adult bridging veins and there is one small study of infant bridging veins.

A systematic autopsy survey of human infant bridging veins.

In the first years of life, subdural haemorrhage (SDH) within the cranial cavity can occur through accidental and non-accidental mechanisms as well as from birth-related injury. This type of bleeding is the most common finding in victims of abusive head trauma (AHT). Historically, the most frequent cause of SDHs in infancy is suggested to be traumatic damage to bridging veins traversing from the brain to the dural membrane.