Urinary Bladder The urinary bladder is a reservoir. Its size, shape, position and relations all vary according to its content and the state of the neighbouring viscera. When the bladder is empty, it lies entirely in the lesser pelvis, but…
Kidney The kidneys excrete end products of metabolism and excess water. These actions are essential for the control of concentrations of various substances in the body, maintaining electrolyte and water balance approximately constant in the tissue fluids. The kidneys also…
Lesser Pelvis The lesser pelvis is a bowl-shaped structure formed from the sacrum, pubis, ilium, ischium, the ligaments that interconnect these bones, and the muscles that line their inner surfaces. It begins at the level of the plane passing through…
The suprarenal (adrenal) glands lie immediately superior and slightly anterior to the superior pole of each kidney (see Figure 72.5, Figure 61.8 ). The glands are golden yellow in colour and are enclosed within the renal fascia, where they are…
The spleen is a large, encapsulated, complex mass of vascular and lymphoid tissues situated in the upper left quadrant of the abdominal cavity between the fundus of the stomach and the respiratory diaphragm. It is mainly concerned with phagocytosis and…
The pancreas is one of the largest digestive glands. Its primary function is exocrine, secreting enzymes involved in the digestion of lipids, carbohydrates and proteins. It has an additional endocrine function derived from clusters of cells scattered throughout the gland,…
The biliary tree comprises the system of ducts that collect and deliver bile from the liver to the descending (second) part of the duodenum. It is conventionally divided into intrahepatic and extrahepatic biliary trees. The intrahepatic ducts are formed from…
The liver is the largest of the abdominal viscera, occupying a substantial portion of the upper abdominal cavity. It occupies most of the right hypochondriac and epigastric regions and frequently extends into the left hypochondriac region as far as the…
The large intestine extends from the ileocaecal junction to the anus ( Fig. 65.1 ). It begins as the caecum and vermiform appendix, which are usually located in the right iliac fossa. The ascending colon passes superiorly in the right…
Overview The small intestine consists of the duodenum, jejunum and ileum. It extends from the pylorus to the ileocaecal junction and has a mean length of 5 metres (3–8.5 metres) when measured intraoperatively in adults ( ). The duodenum extends…