Parts
- Duodenum: cranial part from the pylorus, cranial flexure, descending duodenum along the right side of the abdomen, caudal flexure near the pelvic inlet, and ascending duodenum left of the root of the mesentery, up to the duodenojejunal flexure.
- Jejunum: the longest part; its mobile loops, hung from the mesentery, fill the middle and ventral abdomen.
- Ileum: short final segment opening into the colon at the ileocolic orifice, on the right, at the level of the first lumbar vertebrae.
Clinical relevance
- Foreign body obstruction: very common; linear foreign bodies plicate the intestine.
- Intussusception: mostly ileocolic in puppies, often secondary to enteritis.
- Parvoviral enteritis: haemorrhagic diarrhoea in unvaccinated puppies.
- Ultrasound: measures wall thickness and layering in chronic enteropathies.
3D model
A continuous modelled tube (illustrative fidelity): the duodenum follows its typical course from the pylorus, and the jejunum and ileum are packed into the space the loops fill in the CT, up to the ileocolic orifice. The position of each loop is not that of the scanned dog.