Transverse colon
Colon transversum
DigestiveOrgansAbdomen
- What it is
- Most mobile part of the colon, slung on the transverse mesocolon from the hepatic flexure to the higher splenic flexure and sagging below the stomach; the greater omentum hangs from it.
- Function
- Continues water absorption and bacterial fermentation, compacting the contents into faeces.
- Size
- About 45 cm long and about 5 cm wide.
- Clinical note
- The region near the splenic flexure is a watershed between the superior and inferior mesenteric arteries, so it is vulnerable to ischaemic colitis.