View source for Cecum



==Overview==
{{Infobox Anatomy |
  Name         = Cecum |
  Latin        = |
  GraySubject  = 249 |
  GrayPage     = 1177 |
  Image        = Stomach colon rectum diagram.svg |
  Caption      = |
  Image2       = Gray1043.png |
  Caption2     = Superior ileocecal fossa. (Cecum labeled at bottom left.) |
  System       = |
  Precursor    = [[Midgut]] |
  MeshName     = Cecum |
  MeshNumber   = A03.556.124.526.209 |
  DorlandsPre  = c_01 |
  DorlandsSuf  = 12204134 |
}}
{{SI}}
The '''cecum''' or '''caecum''' (from the [[Latin]] ''[[wikt:caecus|caecus]]'' meaning [[blind]]) is a pouch connected to the ascending [[Colon (anatomy)|colon]] of the [[large intestine]] and the [[ileum]]. It is separated from the ileum by the [[ileocecal valve]] (ICV) or Bauhin's valve, and is considered to be the beginning of the large intestine. It is also separated from the colon by the [[cecocolic junction]].

==Variation across species==
The cecum is present in [[mammal]]s,  and two ceca are present in most [[bird]]s, and some [[reptile]]s. 

Most [[herbivore]]s have a relatively large cecum, hosting a large number of [[bacterium|bacteria]], which aid in the [[enzyme|enzymatic]] breakdown of plant materials such as [[cellulose]]. 

Exclusive [[carnivore]]s, whose diets contain little or no plant material, have a reduced cecum, often partially or wholly replaced by the [[vermiform appendix]].

==Etymology==
The term cecum comes from the Latin, meaning blind gut or [[cul de sac]]. 

In dissections by the Greek philosophers, the connection between the [[ileum]] of the small intestines and the cecum was not fully understood. Most of the studies of the digestive tract were done on animals and the results were compared to human structures. 

The junction between the small intestines and the colon, called the [[ileocecal valve]], is so small in some animals that it was not considered to be a connection between the small and large intestines. During a dissection, the colon could be traced from the rectum, to the sigmoid colon, through the descending, transverse, and ascending sections. The colon seemed to dead-end into the cecum, or cul-de-sac. 

However, the connection between the end of the small intestines, ileum, and the start of the colon, cecum are now clearly understood, but the name has not changed.

==See also==
* [[McBurney's point]]

==Additional images==
<gallery>
 Image:McBurney's point.jpg|Location of McBurney's point (#1)
 Image:Gray534.png|The superior mesenteric artery and its branches.
 Image:Gray536.png|Arteries of cecum and vermiform process.
 Image:Gray1044.png|Inferior ileocecal fossa. 
 Image:Gray1075.png|Interior of the cecum and lower end of ascending colon, showing colic valve.
 Image:Gray1224.png|Topography of thoracic and abdominal viscera.
 Image:Ileocecal valve.jpg|[[Colonoscopy|Endoscopic]] image of cecum with arrow pointing to [[ileocecal valve]] in foreground.
</gallery>

==External links==
* [http://learning.mgccc.cc.ms.us/science/cat/sld021.htm Photo at mgccc.cc.ms.us]
* {{SUNYAnatomyFigs|37|03|08}} - "Abdominal organs in situ."
* {{SUNYAnatomyFigs|37|06|09}} - "The larger intestine."
* {{SUNYAnatomyFigs|39|05|09}} - "The cecum with the distal portion of the ileum."
* {{SUNYAnatomyLabs|39|14|01|01}} - "Incisions of the Cecum"
* {{ViennaCrossSection|pelvis/pelvis-e12-2}}
* [http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/354/13/e12/DC1 Video clip of worms in the Cecum]


{{digestive_system}}

[[Category:Digestive system]]

[[cs:Slepé střevo]]
[[da:Blindtarm]]
[[de:Blinddarm]]
[[es:Ciego (anatomía)]]
[[eo:Cekumo]]
[[fr:Cæcum]]
[[id:Usus buntu]]
[[it:Cieco (anatomia)]]
[[lt:Akloji žarna]]
[[nl:Blinde darm]]
[[no:Blindtarm]]
[[pl:Jelito ślepe]]
[[pt:Ceco]]
[[ru:Слепая кишка]]
[[simple:Cecum]]
[[sk:Slepé črevo]]
[[sl:Slepo črevo]]
[[fi:Umpisuoli]]
[[sv:Blindtarm]]
[[zh:盲肠]]

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