Diverticulum

When diverticula is called in medicine bubbles, pear - or sac-like protrusion of the walls of hollow organs. Diverticula occur before birth as a normal stage of development of various organs. After the birth of diverticula are deviations from the normal state of the body. A need for treatment is usually only in case of complaints. They are caused by pressure or train.

Diverticulum with possible clinical significance

Diverticula are most common in the colon, but can also in all other areas of the digestive tract occur between pharynx and rectum. In urinary bladder or ureter may be affected. Relatively rarely diverticulum ago at heart.

Diverticula may be congenital or acquired and are distinguished according to their shapes:

• True diverticula: With a true diverticulum all wall layers are everted. The cause is usually a train from the outside (so-called Traktionsdivertikel ). An example of the Meckel 's diverticulum is in the ileum.

• False diverticula ( pseudodiverticula ): where individual wall layers - usually only the mucosa and the directly underlying layer - everted through gaps in the muscles through (for example, to vessel passage points ). The cause is usually an increased pressure within the hollow organ, associated with wall weaknesses (so-called pulsion ). Examples are the Zenker's diverticulum of the pharynx or occurring above the diaphragm diverticulum of the esophagus ( " epiphrenales diverticula "). A epiphrenales diverticulum is often associated with a dysfunction of the smooth muscle or hiatal hernias.

• Diverticulum of the intestine are mainly in the colon ( sigmoid ) to be found. They are caused by a prolapse of the mucosa through the muscle gaps of the intestinal wall, and are therefore mostly pseudodiverticula. These muscle gaps are actually points of passage of the intestinal wall vessels and thus provide a preferred site for the diverticulum dar. In some cases, the diverticulum may first intramural run (within the bowel wall ), in the latter part takes the protrusion of the mucous membrane increase in size and the diverticulum may be symptomatic. This is often the case in the elderly (> 60 years). The actual reason in the Schleimhautausstülpung the increased intestinal pressure ( = intraluminal pressure) is due, in turn, caused by a lack of dietary fiber content of the diet.

In diverticulosis ( diverticular disease ) many diverticula are. When diverticulitis is inflammation of one or more of these diverticula.

Diverticulum in the prenatal development

Kidney, lung and thymus are first created in the normal course of prenatal development as a diverticulum of the previous structures.