The minor duodenal papilla is the opening of the

accessory pancreatic duct The pancreatic duct, or duct of Wirsung (also, the major pancreatic duct due to the existence of an accessory pancreatic duct), is a duct joining the pancreas to the common bile duct. This supplies it with pancreatic juice from the exocrine pancr ...

into the descending second section of the

duodenum The duodenum is the first section of the small intestine in most higher vertebrates, including mammals, reptiles, and birds. In fish, the divisions of the small intestine are not as clear, and the terms anterior intestine or proximal intestine m ...

Structure

The minor duodenal papilla is contained within the second part of the

. It is situated 2 cm proximal to the major duodenal papilla, and thus 5–8 cm from the opening 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 ...

. The

gastroduodenal artery In anatomy, the gastroduodenal artery is a small blood vessel in the abdomen. It supplies blood directly to the pylorus (distal part of the stomach) and proximal part of the duodenum. It also indirectly supplies the pancreatic head (via the anterio ...

lies posterior.

Variation

The minor duodenal papilla may or may not contain a functioning

sphincter A sphincter is a circular muscle that normally maintains constriction of a natural body passage or orifice and which relaxes as required by normal physiological functioning. Sphincters are found in many animals. There are over 60 types in the h ...

and patent duct. When present, the sphincter is known as the ''sphincter of Helly'', and the duct as the ''

accessory pancreatic duct of Santorini The pancreatic duct, or duct of Wirsung (also, the major pancreatic duct due to the existence of an accessory pancreatic duct), is a duct joining the pancreas to the common bile duct. This supplies it with pancreatic juice from the exocrine pancre ...

''. In 10% of people, the minor duodenal papilla is the prime duct for drainage of the pancreas, although in others it may not be present at all. Pain from the region will be referred to the epigastric region of the abdomen due to its associated dermatomes.

Function

The duct is an embryological remnant, however in a small majority of people drains the pancreas.

Development

The minor duodenal papilla represents the remnants of the opening of the

, which drains the

dorsal pancreatic bud Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage * Dorsal co ...

during

foetal A fetus or foetus (; plural fetuses, feti, foetuses, or foeti) is the unborn offspring that develops from an animal embryo. Following embryonic development the fetal stage of development takes place. In human prenatal development, fetal develo ...

development.

Clinical significance

When

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...

, the minor duodenal papilla may be associated with recurrent

pancreatitis Pancreatitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the pancreas. The pancreas is a large organ behind the stomach that produces digestive enzymes and a number of hormones. There are two main types: acute pancreatitis, and chronic p ...

. This is particularly common in a subset of people, when the dorsal pancreatic bud fails to fuse with the ventral pancreatic bud, a condition called

pancreatic divisum Pancreatic divisum is a congenital anomaly in the anatomy of the ducts of the pancreas in which a single pancreatic duct is not formed, but rather remains as two distinct dorsal and ventral ducts. Most individuals with pancreas divisum remain with ...

, or when patent and ligated.

History

The other names of minor duodenal papilla is '' Santorini's minor caruncle''.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Pancreas anatomy