JADE R.

DINOLAN MARCH 31,2019

BSN-2
JADE R. DINOLAN MARCH 31,2019
BSN-2

Upper GI

The liver- is a roughly triangular accessory organ of the digestive system located to the right of the
stomach, just inferior to the diaphragm and superior to the small intestine. The liver weighs about 3
pounds and is the second largest organ in the body

The esophagus- is a muscular tube connecting the pharynx to the stomach that is part of the upper
gastrointestinal tract. It carries swallowed masses of chewed food along its length. At the inferior end of
the esophagus is a muscular ring called the lower esophageal sphincter or cardiac sphincter. The
function of this sphincter is to close of the end of the esophagus and trap food in the stomach.

The stomach- is a muscular sac that is located on the left side of the abdominal cavity, just inferior to
the diaphragm. In an average person, the stomach is about the size of their two fists placed next to each
other. This major organ acts as a storage tank for food so that the body has time to digest large meals
properly. The stomach also contains hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes that continue the digestion
of food that began in the mouth.

The gallbladder- is a small, pear-shaped organ located just posterior to the liver. The gallbladder is used
to store and recycle excess bile from the small intestine so that it can be reused for the digestion of
subsequent meals.

The sinusoids and bile canaliculi neighbor each other in the liver. The sinusoids are capillary-like vessels
that the blood is conveyed to the inferior vena cava by the hepatic veins. Bile is produced in the liver by
the hepatocytes and secreted into thin channels called bile canaliculi located within each hepatic plate.
The canaliculi are drained peripherally by bile ducts that in turn drain into hepatic ducts that carry bile
away from the liver. As a result, blood travels in the sinusoids and bile travels in the opposite direction
so blood and bile never mix in the lobules of the liver under normal conditions.

The pancreas- is a glandular organ in the upper abdomen, but really it serves as two glands in one: a
digestive exocrine gland and a hormone-producing endocrine gland. Functioning as an exocrine gland,
the pancreas excretes enzymes to break down the proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and nucleic acids in
food. Functioning as an endocrine gland, the pancreas secretes the hormones insulin and glucagon to
control blood sugar levels throughout the day. Both of these diverse functions are vital to the body’s
survival

The omentum- is an apron-like double fold of fatty membrane that hangs down in front of the
intestines. It contains blood vessels, nerves, lymph vessels and lymph nodes. It acts as a storage for fat
and also may limit the spread of infection in the abdominal cavity.
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The spleen- is a brown, flat, oval-shaped lymphatic organ that filters and stores blood to protect the
body from infections and blood loss.Protected by our ribs, the spleen is located between the stomach
and the diaphragm in the left hypochondriac region of the abdominal body cavity. The splenic artery
branches off from the aorta and the celiac trunk to deliver oxygenated blood to the spleen, while the
splenic vein carries deoxygenated blood away from the spleen to the hepatic portal vein. A tough
connective tissue capsule surrounds the soft inner tissue of the spleen.

Lower GI

The small intestine is a long, thin tube about 1 inch in diameter and about 10 feet long that is part of the
lower gastrointestinal tract. It is located just inferior to the stomach and takes up most of the space in
the abdominal cavity. The entire small intestine is coiled like a hose and the inside surface is full of many
ridges and folds. These folds are used to maximize the digestion of food and absorption of nutrients. By
the time food leaves the small intestine, around 90% of all nutrients have been extracted from the food
that entered it.

The duodenum is the first and shortest segment of the small intestine. It receives partially digested food
(known as chyme) from the stomach and plays a vital role in the chemical digestion of chyme in
preparation for absorption in the small intestine. Many chemical secretions from the pancreas, liver and
gallbladder mix with the chyme in the duodenum to facilitate chemical digestion.Located inferior to the
stomach, the duodenum is a 10-12 inch (25-30 cm) long C-shaped, hollow tube. The duodenum is a part
of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, attached to the pyloric sphincter of the stomach on its superior end and
to the jejunum of the small intestine on its inferior end.

The jejunum is the middle segment of the small intestine found between the duodenum and the ileum.
Most of the nutrients present in food are absorbed by the jejunum before being passed on to the ileum
for further absorption.

The ileum is the last part of the three part tube that makes up the small intestine. It is where the
remaining nutrients are absorbed before moving into the large intestine.

The terminal ileum is the distal end of the small intestine that intersects with the large intestine. It
contains the ileocecal sphincter, a smooth muscle sphincter that controls the flow of chyme into the
large intestine.

The ileocecal valve, also known as the ileocaecal valve or Tulp’s valve, is located at the union of the
large and small intestines. Valves in the body work to restrict movement of fluids to one direction only.
The ileocecal valve is a circular (or sphincter) muscle which contracts as needed to limit the reflux of
colonic contents into the small intestine. Approximately two liters of fluid a day pass through the
ileocecal valve to the colon. It is also the only place in the gastrointestinal tract which is used for bile
acid and Vitamin B12 absorption.

The large intestine- is the final section of the gastrointestinal tract that performs the vital task of
absorbing water and vitamins while converting digested food into feces. Although shorter than the small
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intestine in length, the large intestine is considerably thicker in diameter, thus giving it its name. The
large intestine is about 5 feet (1.5 m) in length and 2.5 inches (6-7 cm) in diameter in the living body, but
becomes much larger postmortem as the smooth muscle tissue of the intestinal wall relaxes.

The cecum plays an important role in the digestive system by assisting in the formation of feces. Partially
digested food, known as chyme, passes through the small intestine where it is digested and most of its
nutrients are absorbed. The ileocecal sphincter at the end of the small intestine opens and closes to
allow small amounts of chyme to enter the cecum at the beginning of the large intestine. Chyme is next
mixed with bacteria by contractions in the walls of the cecum, before being pushed upward into the
ascending colon.

Extending from the inferior end of the large intestine’s cecum, the human appendix is a narrow pouch
of tissue whose resemblance to a worm inspired its alternate name, vermiform (worm-like) appendix. It
is located in the right iliac region of the abdomen (in the lower right-hand abdominal area), measuring
about four inches long and roughly a quarter of an inch in diameter.Like the rest of the digestive tract,
the appendix is made of an inner layer of mucosa with submucosa, muscularis, and serosa layers
surrounding it.

The ascending colon- is one of the four major regions of the colon, which is itself one of the parts of our
large intestine. The ascending colon carries feces from the cecum superiorly along the right side of our
abdominal cavity to the transverse colon. In the ascending colon, bacteria digest the transitory fecal
matter in order to release vitamins. The intestinal wall absorbs water, nutrients, and vitamins from the
feces and deposits these materials into our bloodstream

The hepatic flexure- is on the right side of the body near the liver. It is the right-angle bend in the colon
that marks the connection of the ascending colon and the transverse colon.

The transverse colon- is the longest region of the colon and is located between the ascending colon and
descending colon. It is named for the fact that it crosses the abdominal cavity transversely from the right
side to left side just below the stomach. Much of the absorption and feces formation of the colon takes
place in the transverse colon, making it a very important region of the digestive system.

The splenic flexure- is the sharp bend of the colon where the transverse colon joins the descending
colon. It is located under the spleen.

The descending colon- is a segment of the large intestine and is the third and penultimate segment of
the colon. It transports feces from the transverse colon inferiorly along the left side of the abdominal
cavity to the sigmoid colon. Feces passing through the descending colon are stored until they are ready
to be eliminated from the body. The walls of the descending colon absorb water as well as remaining
nutrients and vitamins from the feces, depositing these valuable substances into our bloodstream.

The sigmoid colon- is a curved, S-shaped region of the large intestine and is the final segment of the
colon. It transports fecal matter from the descending colon to the rectum and anus. Feces are stored in
the sigmoid colon until they are ready to be eliminated from the body through the anal canal. The
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intestinal wall of the sigmoid colon also plays a small role in the absorption of water, nutrients and
vitamins from feces.

The rectum- is the final segment of the large intestine that connects the colon to the anus. It stores fecal
matter produced in the colon until the body is ready to eliminate the waste through the process of
defecation.

The anus, or anal canal-, is the final segment of the gastrointestinal tract. It acts as the orifice that feces
pass through during defecation.
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