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Liver, gall bladder and pancreas: Digestive attachments

They are three structures that, although do not come into direct contact with food, ease its decomposition. Creators of chemical substances and storage and excretion organs, these attached glands regulate an important part of the bodys chemical balance.

The liver

It is the largest organ in the body, reaching a weight of 1.5 kilograms in an adult.It is located in the upper right part of the abdominal cavity and is considered one of the most important and powerful viscera of the body. This way, any deterioration or hindering of its functions not only affects the digestive system, but causes a general unbalance.

The liver is covered by a layer of connective tissue dubbed Glisson’s capsule and it has two different sized lobes (left and right). Each lobe is made up of thousands of lobules that have an hexagonal shape and are highly irrigated. In the center of each one we find the central vein, which flows into the hepatic vein. In addition, it has branches of the hepatic artery and branches of the portal vein.

This organ has numerous chemical tasks, reason for which it is considered a true laboratory. It regulates the sugar in the blood, breaks down fats, proteins and hormones, stores vitamins and minerals and eliminates toxic substances that enter the body (like alcohol, medication, etc.). It even has the ability to withdraw some bacteria and lifeless remains of blood cells. It is also in charge of producing a vital digestive fluid, bile, which eases digestion of fats. This liquid is lead from its factory (the hepatocytes or hepatic cells) towards the outside of the liver through fine biliary canaliculi, which together form the right and left biliary ducts.

Gall bladder

Catalogued as a storage structure, the gall bladder is a small, pear-shaped pouch, some eight centimeters long and three wide.It is located on the right side of the abdomen, beneath the liver and foramen, from inside to outside, layers of fibrous tissue, muscles (which contract to extract bile) and a coating of mucous membrane. Bile is temporarily and continuously stored in it, reason for which it is connected directly to the liver through the biliary ducts.
The gall bladder also has important conduits through which it pours its contents towards the first portion of the small intestine. Among them is the cystic duct, which comes out of the gall baldder and connects to the duodenum by the choledocus (common bile duct). This last one is a tube of approximately 10 millimeters that has a valve that opens and closes the passage of the biliary content called sphincter of Oddi.

The pancreas

Behind the stomach we find an elongated, flat gland that fits perfectly into the curve of the duodenum: the pancreas.The pancreas not only stands out for its digestive functions (its fluids break down food), but also for its hormonal ones (secretes insulin hormone directly into the blood, which regulates the amount of glucose in the blood).
The pancreas has a length of nearly 15 centimeters and is a true capsule that houses numerous lobules inside that produce and secrete digestive enzymes. It is important to point out that between each of them we find islets of Langerhans, true insulin factories. The juices generated by the pancreas head through minor ducts towards the main and accessory pancreatic ducts. From there, through a widening of the duodenum called ampulla of Vater, they set to their digestive task.


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