2 20 THE yiSCERA. 



omentum along the cranial border of the pancreas to the 

 duodenal mesentery. Farther to the right the descending limb 

 of the omentum, which is here shorter, encloses the spleen and 

 holds it in position parallel to the greater curvature of the 

 stomach and about one centimeter from it. This part of the 

 great omentum is sometimes called the gastrosplenic or 

 gastrolienal omentum. 



The great omental sac communicates with the peritoneal 

 sac by an opening, the foramen epiploicum or foramen of 

 Winslow. This opening lies caudad and dextrad of the 

 caudate lobe of the liver. This lobe itself lies within the sac. 

 Along the ventral border of the foramen epiploicum pass the 

 common bile-duct from the liver and the portal vein to the 

 liver. 



The size of the great omental sac is increased by the 

 lesser omentum. This is a double sheet of peritoneum which 

 stretches horizontally from the liver to the duodenum and the 

 lesser curvature of the stomach. It covers ventrad the caudate 

 lobe of the liver. Its right border is at the foramen epiploicum. 

 The part of it which stretches to the duodenum is called the 

 duodenohepatic ligament and contains the bile-ducts and the 

 portal vein. The part that stretches to the stomach is called 

 the gastrohepatic ligament. The peritoneum covers the caudal 

 and cranial surfaces of the liver and is reflected to the adjacent 

 parts to form the ligaments of the liver. 



The suspensory ligament of the liver passes from the 

 caudal surface of the diaphragm and the median ventral line 

 for about one or two centimeters caudad of the diaphragm, to 

 the liver, and extends between its two halves. The ligamentum 

 teres or round ligament is the thickened free caudal border of 

 the suspensory ligament. It is the remains of the foetal umbili- 

 cal vein. From the dorsal border of the liver the peritoneum 

 which covers its cranial surface turns ventrad onto the caudal 

 surface of the diaphragm, while that which covers its caudal 

 surface turns dorsad onto the caudal surface of the diaphragm 

 to reach the dorsal body wall. Between these two sheets a 

 small linear part of the surface of the liver is closely applied to 

 the diaphragm without intervening peritoneum. The two 



