View of the diaphragm with the tubes that pass through
it. 1. Arch of the diaphragm; 2. the trunk of the aorta
passing from the chest into the abdomen; 3. the esophagus
passing from the chest through the diaphragm to the stomach;
4. the vena cava, the great vein that returns the
blood to the heart from the lower parts of the body, passing
from the abdomen, into the chest, in its way to the right
side of the heart; 5. 6. muscles that arise in the interior of
the trunk and that act upon the thigh; 5. the muscle called
psoas; 6. the muscle called iliacus.
118. The partition formed by the diaphragm between the thorax and abdomen, though complete, is moveable; for as the diaphragm descends in inspiration and ascends in expiration, it proportionally enlarges or diminishes the cavities between which it is placed; consequently, the actual magnitude of these cavities varies every moment, and the size of the one is always in the inverse ratio of that of the other.
119. Between the abdomen and the pelvis there is no separation; one cavity is directly continuous with the other (fig. LXI. 3); but along the inner surface of the expanded bones, which form a part of the lateral boundary of the abdomen, there is a prominent line, termed the brim of the pelvis (fig. XLV. 15), marking the point at which the abdomen is supposed to terminate and the pelvis to commence.
120. Behind and at the sides the walls of the abdomen are completed partly by the lumbar portion of the spinal column and partly by the lumbar muscles (fig. XLV. 4), and before by the abdominal muscles (fig. LXIII. 9).
121. The inner surface of the walls of the abdomen is lined throughout by a serous membrane, termed the peritoneum (fig. LXIII.). From the walls of the abdomen, the peritoneum is reflected upon the organs contained in the cavity, and is continued over them so as to form their external coat. The peritoneum also descends between the several organs, connecting them together, and holding them firmly in their situation; and it likewise forms numerous folds, in which are embedded the vessels and nerves that supply the organs. It secretes a serous fluid, by which its own surface and that of the organs it covers is rendered moist, polished, and glistening, and by means of which the organs glide smoothly over it, and over one another in the various movements of the body, and are in constant contact without growing together. In structure, distribution, and function, the peritoneum is thus perfectly analogous to the pleura.
122. Like the thorax, the abdomen is always completely full. When the diaphragm is in action, it contracts. When the diaphragm is in the state of contraction, the abdominal and lumbar muscles are in the state of relaxation. By the contraction of the diaphragm, the organs contained in the abdomen are pushed downwards, and the anterior and lateral walls of the cavity being at this moment in a state of relaxation, they readily yield, and, consequently, the viscera are protruded forwards and at the sides. But the abdominal and lumbar muscles in their turn contract, the diaphragm relaxing; and, consequently, the viscera, forced from the front and sides of the abdomen, are pushed upwards, together with the diaphragm, into the cavity of the thorax. A firm and uniform pressure is thus at all times maintained upon the whole contents of the abdomen: there is an exact adaptation of the containing to the contained parts, and of one organ to another. No space intervenes either between the walls of the abdomen and the organs they enclose, or between one organ and another: so that the term cavity does not denote a void or empty space, but merely the extent of the boundary within which the viscera are contained.
123. The contents of the abdomen consist of the organs which belong to the apparatus of digestion, and of those which belong to the apparatus of excretion.
124. The organs which belong to the apparatus of digestion are—1. The stomach (fig. LXIII. 2) 2. The duodenum (fig. LXIII. 4). 3. The jejunum (fig. LXIII. 5). 4. The ilium (fig. LXIII. 5). The three last organs are called the small intestines, and their office is partly to carry on the digestion of the aliment commenced in the stomach, and partly to afford an extended surface for the absorption of the nutriment as it is prepared from the aliment. 5. The pancreas (fig. LXIV. 5). 6. The liver (fig. LXIV. 2). 7. The spleen (fig. LXIV. 4). The three last organs truly belong to the apparatus of digestion, and their office is to co-operate with the stomach and the small intestines in the conversion of the aliment into nutriment.
