Ileum
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View Jeremy Jones's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Tariq Walizai had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Tariq Walizai's current disclosures- Ilea
- Ileal anatomy
The ileum (plural: ilea) is the final part of the small intestine, following the duodenum and jejunum.
On this page:
Terminology
The ileum is not to be confused with the ilium - the associated plural/adjectival forms are ilea/ileal and ilia/ilial respectively. The plural form "ileums" is seen but is generally felt to be incorrect.
Gross anatomy
The ileum is 2-4 m in length and is separated from the cecum by the ileocecal valve (ICV). While there is no discrete line demarcating the jejunum from the ileum, there are a few differences between the two:
ileal mesentery contains more fat than jejunal mesentery
ileum tends to be smaller caliber than jejunum
ileum tends to be lighter in color than the jejunum
-
ileum contains abundant Peyer patches
Peyer patches are unencapsulated lymphoid nodules that contain large amounts of lymphocytes and other cells of the immune system
Peyer patches are only found on the antimesenteric border 3
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Arterial supply
ileal branches of the superior mesenteric artery
Venous drainage
correspond to arteries and drain into the superior mesenteric vein
Lymphatic drainage
drain to superior mesenteric lymph nodes
Innervation
-
via superior mesenteric plexus
sympathetic supply from lateral horn cells of the T9-10 spinal cord
parasympathetic supply from vagus nerves
Variant anatomy
Related pathology
Quiz questions
References
- 1. Susan Standring. Gray's Anatomy. (2008) ISBN: 9780443066849 - Google Books
- 2. Michael Schünke, Erik Schulte, Udo Schumacher. Thieme Atlas of Anatomy. (2006) ISBN: 9783131421111 - Google Books
- 3. Chummy S. Sinnatamby. Last's Anatomy. (2011) ISBN: 9780702033940 - Google Books
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