ANATOMY OF GIT

Abdomen Cavity (1)

 The abdominal wall represents the boundaries of the abdominal cavity. The abdominal wall is split into the posterior (back), lateral (sides) and anterior (front) walls. There is a common set of layers covering and forming all the walls: the deepest being the extraperitoneal fat, the parietal peritoneum, and a layer of fascia which has different names over where it covers (eg transversalis, psoas fascia). Superficial to these, but not present in the posterior wall are the three layers of muscle, the transversus abdominis (tranvserse abdominal muscle), the internal (obliquus internus) and the external oblique (obliquus externus).

 The Abdominal Wall The structure of the abdominal wall is similar in principle to the thoracic wall. There are three layers, an external, internal and innermost layer. The vessels and nerves lie between the internal and innermost layers. The abdomen can be divided into quadrants or nine abdominal regions. Pain felt in these regions may be considered to be direct or referred.

 Layers of anterior abdominal wall In human anatomy, the layers of the abdominal wall are (from superficial to deep): Skin Fascia
Camper's fascia - fatty superficial layer Scarpa's fascia - deep fibrous layer

Muscle
External oblique muscle Internal oblique muscle Transverse abdominal muscle

Fascia transversalis Peritoneum

 PERITONEUM the peritoneum is the serous membrane that forms the lining of the abdominal cavity it covers most of the intra-abdominal organs The peritoneum both supports the abdominal organs and serves as a conduit for their blood and lymph vessels and nervesThe peritoneum is thin membrane that lines the abdominal and pelvic cavities, and covers most abdominal viscera. It is composed of layer of mesothelium supported by a thin layer of connective tissue. Although ultimately one continuous sheet, two types of peritoneum are referenced:

 Parietal peritoneum is that portion that lines the abdominal and pelvic cavities. Those cavities are also known as the peritoneal cavity. Visceral peritoneum covers the external surfaces of most abdominal organs, including the intestinal tract.

Layers OF PERITONEUM The outer layer, called the parietal peritoneum, is attached to the abdominal wall. The inner layer, the visceral peritoneum, is wrapped around the internal organs that are located inside the intraperitoneal cavity. The potential space between these two layers is the peritoneal cavity; it is filled with a small amount (about 50 ml) of slippery serous fluid that allows the two layers to slide freely over each other.

Parts Of Peritoneum: 1)MESENTRY:the mesentery is the double layer of peritoneum that suspends the jejunum and ileum from the posterior wall of the abdomen. Its meaning, however, is frequently extended to include double layers of peritoneum connecting various components of the abdominal cavity.The mesentery proper (i.e. the original definition) refers to the peritoneum responsible for connecting the jejunum and ileum, parts of the small intestine, to the back wall of the abdomen. Between the two sheets of peritoneum are blood vessels, lymph vessels, and nerves. This allows these parts of the small intestine to move relatively freely within the abdominopelvic cavity

2)OMENTUM:are abdominal structures formed from peritoneum and structurally similar to mesentery. The visceral peritoneum covering the stomach extends on both sides into large, double-layered sheets that are filled with prominent patches of fat, giving it a lace-like appearance. The lesser omentum arises from the lesser curvature of the stomach and extends to the liver. The greater omentum is given off from the greater curvature of the stomach, forms a large sheet. Omentum (from Latin, meaning "apron") can refer to two different components of the peritoneum: greater omentum lesser omentum that lies over the intestines.

 GREATER OMENTUM The greater omentum (also the great omentum, omentum majus , gastrocolic omentum, or epiplon) is a large fold of peritoneum that hangs down from the stomach, and extends from the stomach to the posterior abdominal wall after associating with the transverse colon. Structure The greater omentum is the largest peritoneal fold. It consists of a double sheet of peritoneum, folded on itself so that it is made up of four layers. The two layers which descend from the stomach and commencement of the duodenum pass in front of the small intestines, sometimes as low down as the pelvis; they then turn upon themselves, and ascend again as far as the transverse colon, where they separate and enclose that part of the intestine.

 These individual layers may be easily demonstrated in the young subject, but in the adult they are more or less inseparably blended. The left border of the greater omentum is continuous with the gastrolienal ligament; its right border extends as far as the commencement of the duodenum. The greater omentum is usually thin, presents a cribriform appearance, and always contains some adipose tissue, which in obese people accumulates in considerable quantity. Between its two anterior layers, a short distance from the greater curvature of the stomach, is the anastomosis between the right and left gastroepiploic vessels. The greater omentum can often be found wrapped around areas of infection and trauma.

Subdivisions The greater omentum is often defined to encompass a variety of structures. Most sources include the following three: Gastrocolic ligament - to transverse colon (occasionally on its own considered synonymous with "greater omentum Gastrosplenic ligament - to spleen Gastrophrenic ligament - to thoracic diaphragm The splenorenal ligament (from the left kidney to the spleen) is occasionally considered part of the greater omentum.

Lesser omentum:
The lesser omentum (small omentum; gastrohepatic omentum) is the double layer of peritoneum that extends from the liver to the lesser curvature of the stomach and the start of the duodenum Structure: The lesser omentum is extremely thin, and is continuous with the two layers of peritoneum which cover respectively the antero-superior and postero-inferior surfaces of the stomach and first part of the duodenum.

Divisions: Anatomically, the lesser omentum is divided into ligaments, each starting with the prefix "hepato" to indicate that it connects to the liver at one end. Most sources divide it into two parts:[ hepatogastric ligament: the portion connecting to the lesser curvature of the stomach hepatoduodenal ligament: the portion connecting to the duodenum Some sources include additional divisions: hepatophrenic ligament: the portion connecting to the thoracic diaphragm hepatoesophageal ligament: the portion connecting to the esophagus