The dorsal venous arch of the hand (AVD) was studied in a sample of the Bucaramanga population of 54 women and 50 men. The variables studied in the AVD were: Number of veins that form it, number of veins that run through its interior, presence of a vein that forms its lateral and medial part, closed or discontinuous conformation of the AVD, if the metacarpal vein of the first finger joined the AVD and contributed to the formation of the cephalic vein, if the metacarpal vein of the fifth finger joined the ADL and contributed to the formation of the basilic vein. The concordance between the vein chosen by two independent observers was also reviewed, as the most suitable for venipuncture. The comparison with the classic anatomy texts showed concordance in which dorsal metacarpal veins are formed near the metacarpal head, but these veins do not always unite completely to form a "closed venous arch" as described in metacarpal diagrams by most authors. Only 41.8 % were closed AVD. The metacarpal veins of the first and fifth toes joined the AVD in 44.23 % and 89.42 % respectively. This fact, in addition that in the first and fifth fingers, there may be more than one vein draining the blood, which do not always bind to the AVD, helps explain the reason other studies describe absence of cephalic veins, basilica or presence of several cephalic veins that allow the formation of certain patterns of the cubital fossa. There was 78.85 % agreement regarding the vein chosen for possible venipuncture and in the bivariate analysis, there was a statistical association of this concordance when crossing it with the number of veins that run through the interior of the AVD.

KEY WORDS: Dorsal venous arch of the hand; Superficial veins; Venipuncture