368 ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY 



The posterior surface of the liver. 



The posterior surface of the ascending colon. The kidneys. 



The transverse portion of the duodenum. The front of the 

 bladder behind the symphysis. These parts have no serous layer. 



The lowest portion of the peritoneal cavity is in the pelvis, 

 extending down about three and a half inches in front of the 

 rectum. In the female this is called the recto-uterine fossa, or 

 pouch of Douglas. In the male it is the recto-vesical fossa. 



The folds of the peritoneum which are connected with the 

 stomach are called omenta (p. 148). 



The folds which connect the intestines to the abdominal wall 

 are called mesenteries (p. 147). 



The folds which connect other organs to the abdominal or pelvic 

 walls are called ligaments. Those for the bladder are called vesical 

 ligaments. 



The ligaments of the liver are the broad, the round, the coronary, 

 and the two lateral ligaments, which connect it to the diaphragm 

 and the anterior abdominal wall. 



Sometimes certain little pockets, or fossae, exist in the perito- 

 neum, behind the different portions of intestine. If a loop or 

 knuckle of bowel slips into one of these fossae it may press its way 

 through it and pass behind the peritoneal sac. This is a retro- 

 peritoneal hernia. 



THE ISCHIO-RECTAL FOSSA 



This is a space between the ischium and the rectum. It is 

 filled with loose connective tissue and adipose, and a few vessels 

 and nerves are therein contained. The skin of the buttock forms 

 the floor of the fossa; the lower part of the rectum is the medial 

 wall; the fascia of the obturator muscle forms the lateral wall. 



Surgical note. If infection occur in this region, a very large abscess 

 might result, the pus burrowing freely in the loose tissues. Ischio-rectal 

 abscess is often caused by internal fistula. 



THE AXILLARY SPACE 



The axilla is the armpit. Its shape is that of a pyramid, with 

 the apex under the shoulder-girdle at the level of the first rib, the 

 base of the pyramid being the floor of the space and composed of the 



