Viscera

This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Viscera is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:

Related Sponsors

BM Pharmacy Generic pharmaceuticals at unbeatable prices. Insomnia, men's health, hair health, pain control. bmpharmacy.com
Online Pharmacy Carisoprodol, tadalafil, sildenafil, vardenafil and more... xlpharmacy.com
MedBasket.com Discreet. Inexpensive. Fast shipping. Great selection. What more can we say? medbasket.com
Frugalmed 2000 reasons to shop with us first. frugalmed.com
Ads by Tiva

Not to be confused with viscous.
"Viscera" redirects here. For other uses, see Viscera (disambiguation).

In anatomy, a viscus (IPA: /ˈvɪskəs/) (plural: viscera /ˈvɪsərə/) is an internal organ of an animal (including humans), in particular an internal organ of the thorax or abdomen. The viscera, when removed from a butchered animal, are known collectively as offal. Internal organs are also known as "innards", or less formally, "guts" (which may also refer to the gastrointestinal tract).

The adjective visceral is used for anything pertaining to the internal organs. Historically, viscera of animals were examined by Roman pagan priests like the haruspices or the augurs in order to divine the future by their shape, dimensions or other factors.

Contents

Human viscera

Further information: Organs of the human body by region

Abdomen

Pelvis and perineum

Innervation

Autonomic nervous system, showing splanchnic nerves in middle, and the vagus nerve as "X" in blue. The heart and organs below in list to right are regarded as viscera.
Autonomic nervous system, showing splanchnic nerves in middle, and the vagus nerve as "X" in blue. The heart and organs below in list to right are regarded as viscera.

The viscera are mainly innervated parasympathetically by the vagus nerve and sympathetically by the splanchnic nerves. The sensory part of the latter reaches the spinal column at certain spinal segments. Pain in any viscera is perceived as referred pain, more specifically pain from the dermatome (anatomy) corresponding to the spinal segment.[1]

Viscus Nerves [2] Origo in spinal column[2]
stomach T6, T7, T8, T9 and, sometimes, T10
Duodenum T5, T6, T7, T8, T9 and, sometimes, T10
pancreatic head T8, T9
jejunum and ileum T5, T6, T7, T8, T9
colon
Spleen T6, T7, T8
vermiform appendix T10
gallbladder and liver T6, T7, T8, T9
kidneys and ureters T11, T12

References

  1. ^ Essential Clinical Anatomy. K.L. Moore & A.M. Agur. Lippincott, 2 ed. 2002. Page 199
  2. ^ a b Unless else specified in boxes, then ref is: Essential Clinical Anatomy. K.L. Moore & A.M. Agur. Lippincott, 2 ed. 2002. Page 199

See also

Wikipedia content modification information:

  • This page was last modified on 16 August 2008, at 03:39.

Wikipedia Authorship and Review

Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.

Wikipedia Usage Guidelines

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Viscera".

The URL for this specific entry is:

All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.