Peritoneal structures

The term peritoneal structures in terminologia Anatomica 2 referfs to the different peritoneal Derivatives (folds and reflections):

• Mesenteries: double-layered peritoneal folds that suspend portions of the gastrointestinal tract from the posterior abdominal wall and serve as conduits for blood vessels, nerves, and lymphatics (e.g., the mesentery of the small bowel, transverse mesocolon, sigmoid mesocolon).

• Omenta: specialized peritoneal folds connecting the stomach to other organs:

  • Greater omentum: a large, apron-like fold hanging from the greater curvature of the stomach, rich in adipose tissue and immune cells (milky spots); plays a role in immune defense and fat storage.

  • Lesser omentum: connects the lesser curvature of the stomach and the proximal duodenum to the liver.

• Peritoneal ligaments: folds of peritoneum that connect organs to each other or to the abdominal wall (e.g., falciform ligament, gastrosplenic ligament, splenorenal ligament, ligamentum teres).

• Peritoneal recesses, pouches, and fossae: spaces formed by peritoneal reflections (e.g., the rectouterine pouch/pouch of Douglas, the hepatorenal recess/Morison's pouch, the paracolic gutters).