Organs in the supracolic region

Abdominal esophagus About an inch long, it enters the abdomen through the esophageal hiatus in the diaphragm. It curves to the left to join the cardia of the stomach. The anterior and posterior vagal trunks are on its anterior and posterior surfaces, respectively. The anterior vagal trunk is composed mainly of fibers from the left […]

Overview of GI tract vessels, lymphatics, and nerves

Optional Reading Clinically Oriented Anatomy, 8th ed., chapter 5, Innervation of abdominal viscera section. Abdominal Viscera The principal viscera of the abdomen are the esophagus (terminal part), stomach, intestines, spleen, pancreas, liver, gallbladder, kidneys, and suprarenal glands. The esophagus, stomach, and intestines form the digestive (alimentary) tract. The kidneys and suprarenal glands will be discussed […]

The peritoneal cavity and mesenteries

What is peritoneum? Peritoneum is a serous membrane. Recall that serous membranes are associated with body cavities and visceral organs within them.  Question What is the function of a serous membrane? What are the names of the two other serous membranes we encountered earlier in our course? Parietal peritoneum lines the walls of the abdominopelvic […]

11. The hand

The hand is crucial to daily living—from sensing our environment to getting food to our mouths. It is very complex in a biomechanical sense, with 19 bones (not including the 8 carpal bones), 19 joints, and 29 (intrinsic and extrinsic) muscles. This complexity permits basic actions such as swinging a bat, to very intricate movements […]

Elbow

Joints associated with the forearm The elbow joint The radius and ulna articulate with the humerus at the elbow joint. It is a uni-axial hinge joint, allowing flexion and extension. It has two articulations: 1. Humero-radial articulation Read More The humero-radial articulation is between the recessed superior surface of the radial head and the capitulum […]