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Peritoneum
In higher vertebrates, the peritoneum is the serous membrane that forms the lining of the abdominal cavity - it covers most of the intra-abdominal organs. It is composed of a layer of mesothelium supported by a thin layer of connective tissue. The peritoneum both supports the abdominal organs and serves as a conduit for their blood and lymph vessels and nerves. Additional recommended knowledge
StructureLayersDo not confuse the abdominal cavity (the space bounded by the vertebrae, abdominal muscles, diaphragm and pelvic floor) with the intraperitoneal space (located within the abdominal cavity, but wrapped in peritoneum). For example, a kidney is inside the abdominal cavity, but is retroperitoneal. Although they ultimately form one continuous sheet, two types or layers of peritoneum and a potential space between them are referenced:
SubdivisionsThere are two main regions of the peritoneum, connected by the epiploic foramen:
The mesentery is the part of the peritoneum through which most abdominal organs are attached to the abdominal wall and supplied with blood and lymph vessels and nerves. Structures include:
In addition, in the pelvic cavity there are several structures that are usually named not for the peritoneum, but for the areas defined by the peritoneal folds:
DevelopmentThe peritoneum develops ultimately from the mesoderm of the trilaminar embryo. As the mesoderm differentiates, one region known as the lateral plate mesoderm splits to form two layers separated by an intraembryonic coelom. These two layers develop later into the visceral and parietal layers found in all serous cavities, including the peritoneum. As an embryo develops, the various abdominal organs grow into the abdominal cavity from structures in the abdominal wall. In this process they become enveloped in a layer of peritoneum. The growing organs "take their blood vessels with them" from the abdominal wall, and these blood vessels become covered by peritoneum, forming a mesentery. Clinical aspectsPathology
Peritoneal dialysisIn one form of dialysis, the peritoneal dialysis, a glucose solution is run through a tube into the peritoneal cavity. The fluid is left there for a prescribed amount of time to absorb waste products, and then removed through the tube. The reason for this effect is the high number of arteries and veins in the peritoneal cavity. Through the mechanism of diffusion, waste products are removed from the blood. Classification of abdominal structuresThe structures in the abdomen are classified as intraperitoneal, retroperitoneal or infraperitoneal depending on whether they are covered with visceral peritoneum and have a mesentery or not.
Structures that are intraperitoneal are generally mobile, while those that are retroperitoneal are relatively fixed in their location. Some structures, such as the kidneys, are "primarily retroperitoneal", while others such as the majority of the duodenum, are "secondarily retroperitoneal", meaning that structure developed intraperitoneally but lost its mesentery and thus became retroperitoneal. EtymologyPeritoneum is derived from Greek. Peri- means around, while -ton- refers to stretching. Thus, peritoneum means stretched around or stretched over. Additional imagesReferences
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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Peritoneum". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia. |