428 SPLANCHNOLOGY, OR ANATOMY OF THE VISCERA 



esophageal orifice; the former opens into the duodenum, and 

 the latter into the esophagus. It is 10 to 12 inches in length, 

 4 to 5 inches in the vertical direction, and weighs 4 to 5 ounces. 

 Its capacity is from 3 to 6 pints. 



The cardiac orifice is the highest part of the stomach, and 

 lies behind the seventh costal cartilage 1 inch to the left of 

 the sternum. The pyloric orifice lies about 2 inches to the 

 right of the mid-line, on a level with the upper border of the 

 first lumbar vertebra; it is guarded by a valve, the pylorus. 

 Between the two orifices the stomach is sickle-shaped and 

 presents an upper concave border, the lesser curvature, and 

 a lower convex border, the greater curvature. The former 

 gives attachment to the gastrohepatic or lesser omentum, 

 the latter affords attachment to the great omentum. The 

 upper end of the stomach is enlarged 2 to 3 inches to the left 

 of the cardiac orifice, to form the fundus or great cul-de-sac, 

 which is connected to the spleen by the gastrosplenic omentum. 

 The pyloric orifice is anterior and inferior to the fundus, and 

 is in relation with the quadrate lobe of the liver and belly 

 wall. The stomach presents two surfaces, an anterosuperior and 

 posteroinferior. 



The relations of the anterosuperior surface are: Diaphragm, 

 under surface of left lobe of liver (pylorus), quadrate lobe of 

 liver, abdominal wall, thoracic wall, formed by the correspond- 

 ing seventh, eighth, and ninth ribs. Posteroinferior surfaces 

 are: Diaphragm, the gastric surface of the spleen, the left 

 suprarenal gland, the upper part of the front of the left kidney, 

 the anterior surface of pancreas, the splenic flexure of colon, and 

 the upper layer of the transverse mesocolon. These structures 

 form a shallow cavity on which the stomach rest, and is termed 

 the stomach bed. The stomach is entirely covered by peri- 

 toneum, except over a small area close to the cardiac orifice, 

 on the posteroinferior surface; this area is limited by the lines 

 of attachment of the gastrophrenic ligament. 



The stomach has a .sr/v>//,v (peritoneal) coat, a muscular 

 coat comprising a longitudinal, circular, and oblique layer, 

 an areolar coat of loose tissue (submucous coat), and a mucous 

 coat. The latter is thickest near the pylorus, thinnest at the 

 fundus, and presents, in the empty condition ' of the organ, 

 numerous ridges, or rug OB, which run longitudinally along the 

 great curvature. Studded over its surface are many small 



