Anterior mediastinum
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| Anterior mediastinum | |
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| Mediastinum | |
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| A transverse section of the thorax, showing the contents of the middle and the posterior mediastinum. The pleural and pericardial cavities are exaggerated since normally there is no space between parietal and visceral pleura and between pericardium and heart. | |
| Latin | mediastinum anterius |
| Gray's | subject #239 1092 |
| Dorlands/Elsevier | m_06/12518960 |
The anterior mediastinum exists only on the left side where the left pleura diverges from the mid-sternal line.
It is narrow, above, but widens out a little below.
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[edit] Boundaries
It is bounded:
- in front by the sternum
- laterally by the pleurae
- behind by the pericardium
- anteriorly by the left Transversus thoracis and the fifth, sixth, and seventh left costal cartilages
[edit] Contents
It contains:
- a quantity of loose areolar tissue
- some lymphatic vessels which ascend from the convex surface of the liver
- two or three anterior mediastinal lymph glands
- the small mediastinal branches of the internal mammary artery
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Norman/Georgetown thoraxlesson4 - "Anterior Mediastinum"
This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained herein may be outdated. Please edit the article if this is the case, and feel free to remove this notice when it is no longer relevant.
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This anatomy article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
Thorax: Mediastinum (Superior, Anterior, Middle, Posterior) - Superior thoracic aperture - Inferior thoracic aperture - Triangle of auscultation - Intercostal space
Thoracic diaphragm: Caval opening - Esophageal hiatus - Aortic hiatus - Central tendon
Abdomen: McBurney's point - Lumbar triangle
Perineum: Urogenital triangle - Anal triangle - Superficial perineal pouch - Perineal membrane - Deep perineal pouch - Urogenital diaphragm - Superior fascia of the urogenital diaphragm - Ischiorectal fossa - Pudendal canal
