The curvatures of the

stomach The stomach is a muscular, hollow organ in the gastrointestinal tract of humans and many other animals, including several invertebrates. The stomach has a dilated structure and functions as a vital organ in the digestive system. The stomach i ...

refer to the greater and lesser curvatures. The

greater curvature The curvatures of the stomach refer to the greater and lesser curvatures. The greater curvature of the stomach is four or five times as long as the lesser curvature. Greater curvature The greater curvature of the stomach forms the lower lef ...

of the stomach is four or five times as long as the

lesser curvature The curvatures of the stomach refer to the greater and lesser curvatures. The greater curvature of the stomach is four or five times as long as the lesser curvature. Greater curvature The greater curvature of the stomach forms the lower left ...

Greater curvature

The greater curvature of the stomach forms the lower left or lateral border of the

Surface

Starting from the cardiac orifice at the incisura cardiaca, it forms an arch backward, upward, and to the left; the highest point of the convexity is on a level with the sixth left

costal cartilage The costal cartilages are bars of hyaline cartilage that serve to prolong the ribs forward and contribute to the elasticity of the walls of the thorax. Costal cartilage is only found at the anterior ends of the ribs, providing medial extension. ...

. From this level it may be followed downward and forward, with a slight convexity to the left as low as the cartilage of the ninth rib; it then turns to the right, to the end of the

pylorus The pylorus ( or ), or pyloric part, connects the stomach to the duodenum. The pylorus is considered as having two parts, the ''pyloric antrum'' (opening to the body of the stomach) and the ''pyloric canal'' (opening to the duodenum). The ''pylori ...

. Directly opposite the incisura angularis of the lesser curvature the greater curvature presents a dilatation, which is the left extremity of the pyloric part; this dilatation is limited on the right by a slight groove, the sulcus intermedius, which is about 2.5 cm, from the duodenopyloric constriction. The portion between the sulcus intermedius and the duodenopyloric constriction is termed the

pyloric antrum The pylorus ( or ), or pyloric part, connects the stomach to the duodenum. The pylorus is considered as having two parts, the ''pyloric antrum'' (opening to the body of the stomach) and the ''pyloric canal'' (opening to the duodenum). The ''pylori ...

. At its commencement the greater curvature is covered by

peritoneum The peritoneum is the serous membrane forming the lining of the abdominal cavity or coelom in amniotes and some invertebrates, such as annelids. It covers most of the intra-abdominal (or coelomic) organs, and is composed of a layer of mesothel ...

continuous with that covering the front of the organ. The left part of the curvature gives attachment to the

gastrolienal ligament The gastrosplenic ligament (also known as the ''ligamentum gastrosplenicum'' or gastrolienal ligament) is part of the greater omentum extending between the stomach and the spleen. It contains several blood vessels. Structure The gastrosplenic li ...

, while to its anterior portion are attached the two layers of the

greater omentum The greater omentum (also the great omentum, omentum majus, gastrocolic omentum, epiploon, or, especially in animals, caul) is a large apron-like fold of visceral peritoneum that hangs down from the stomach. It extends from the greater curvature ...

, separated from each other by the gastroepiploic vessels.

Blood supply

There are three arteries which primarily supply the greater curvature: *

short gastric arteries The short gastric arteries consist of from five to seven small branches, which arise from the end of the splenic artery, and from its terminal divisions. They pass from left to right, between the layers of the gastrolienal ligament, and are dis ...

— upper part and the gastroepiploic vessels: * gastric branches of

left gastro-omental artery The left gastroepiploic artery (or left gastro-omental artery), the largest branch of the splenic artery, runs from left to right about a finger's breadth or more from the greater curvature of the stomach, between the layers of the greater omentum ...

— middle part * gastric branches of

right gastro-omental artery The right gastroepiploic artery (or right gastro-omental artery) is one of the two terminal branches of the gastroduodenal artery. It runs from right to left along the greater curvature of the stomach, between the layers of the greater omentum, an ...

— lower part

Lesser curvature

The lesser curvature of the stomach forms the upper right or medial border of the

Structure

The lesser curvature of the stomach travels between the

cardiac The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide to ...

and

pyloric orifice The pylorus ( or ), or pyloric part, connects the stomach to the duodenum. The pylorus is considered as having two parts, the ''pyloric antrum'' (opening to the body of the stomach) and the ''pyloric canal'' (opening to the duodenum). The ''pylori ...

s. It descends as a continuation of the right margin of the

esophagus The esophagus ( American English) or oesophagus (British English; both ), non-technically known also as the food pipe or gullet, is an organ in vertebrates through which food passes, aided by peristaltic contractions, from the pharynx to th ...

in front of the fibers of the right

crus of the diaphragm The crus of diaphragm (pl. crura), refers to one of two tendinous structures that extends below the diaphragm to the vertebral column. There is a right crus and a left crus, which together form a tether for muscular contraction. They take their ...

, and then, turning to the right, it crosses the first

lumbar vertebra The lumbar vertebrae are, in human anatomy, the five vertebrae between the rib cage and the pelvis. They are the largest segments of the vertebral column and are characterized by the absence of the foramen transversarium within the transverse p ...

and ends at the

. Nearer its pyloric than its cardiac end is a well-marked notch, the ''incisura angularis'', which varies somewhat in position with the state of distension of the viscus; it serves to separate the stomach into a right and a left portion. The lesser curvature gives attachment to the two layers of the

hepatogastric ligament The hepatogastric ligament or gastrohepatic ligament connects the liver to the lesser curvature of the stomach. It contains the right and the left gastric arteries. In the abdominal cavity it separates the greater and lesser sac The lesser ...

– part of the

lesser omentum The lesser omentum (small omentum or gastrohepatic omentum) is the double layer of peritoneum that extends from the liver to the lesser curvature of the stomach, and to the first part of the duodenum. The lesser omentum is usually divided into t ...

, and between these two layers are the

left gastric artery In human anatomy, the left gastric artery arises from the celiac artery and runs along the superior portion of the lesser curvature of the stomach. Branches also supply the lower esophagus. The left gastric artery anastomoses with the right g ...

and the right gastric branch of the hepatic artery.

Additional images

Image:Slide11ddd.JPG, Lesser curvature File:Slide12ddd.JPG, Greater curvature File:Slide18tata.JPG, Stomach. Lesser curvature.Deep dissection. File:Slide20tata.JPG, Stomach. Greater curvature.Deep dissection.

External links

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References

{{Authority control Stomach