|
The omentum is "the guardian of the abdomen". It is a layer of fat that comes off the bottom edge of the stomach and covers your abdominal organs. When there is inflammation or infection, it tries to surround the offending problem in order to isolate it or as we term it, wall it off to try and minimize the damage or at least contain it.
Last week I used it to fill in a large laceration in the liver to minimize the chances of the laceration rebleeding or leaking bile.
It can twist on itself as it moves to cover inflamed or infected areas of the peritoneal cavity...unless you resect it, it can always move to cover anything bad in the abdomen.
__________________
'Revel in action, translate perceptions into instant judgements, and these into actions that are irrevocable, monumentous and dreadful - all this with lightning speed, in conditions of great stress and in an environment of high tension:what is expected of "us" is the impossible, yet we deliver just that.
(adapted from: Sherwin B. Nuland, MD, surgeon and author: The Wisdom of the Body, 1997 )
Education is the anti-ignorance we all need to better treat our patients. ss, 2008.
The blade is so sharp that the incision is perfect. They don't realize they've been cut until they're out of the fight: A Surgeon Warrior. I use a knife to defend life and to save it. ss (aka traumadoc)
|
Linear Mode
