Digestive System Vocabulary Flashcards
The mucous membrane-lined tube of the digestive system that extends from the mouth to the anus and through which foodpasses, digestion takes place, and wastes are eliminated; it includes the pharynx, esophagus, stomach, and intestines.
Alimentary Canal or G.I. Tract
the tongue, salivary glands, pancreas, liver, and gallbladder.
Accessory Digestive Organs
The constructive process by which living cells convert simple substances into more complex compounds, especially into living matter
Anabolism
The part of the colon between the ileocecal orifice and the right colic flexure.
Ascending Colon
a fluid secreted by the liver, concentrated in the gallbladder, and poured into the small intestine via the bile ducts,which helps in alkalinizing the intestinal contents and plays a role in emulsification, absorption, and digestion of fat; its chief constituents are conjugated bile salts, cholesterol, phospholipid, bilirubin, and electrolytes.
Bile
glands in the submucosa of the duodenum, opening into the small intestine; called also duodenal glands.
Brunner’s Glands
the first part of the large intestine, forming a dilated pouch distal to the ileum and proximal to the colon, and giving off the vermiform appendix.
Cecum
the act or process of converting food into chemical substances that can be absorbed and assimilated.
Chemical Digestion
The semifluid, creamy material produced by digestion of food.
Chyme
The evacuation of fecal matter from the rectum.
Defecation
The act or process of swallowing.
Deglutition
The chief substance of the teeth, surrounding the tooth pulp and covered by enamel on the crown and by cementum on the roots.
Dentin
Inflammation of a diverticulum, especially of the small pockets in the wall of the colon that fill with stagnant fecal material and become inflamed.
Diverticulitis
The first or proximal portion of the small intestine, extending from the pylorus to the jejunum
Duodenum
Peristaltic contraction of the small intestine induced by the entrance of food into the stomach.
Enterogastric Reflex
The musculomembranous passage extending from the pharynx to the stomach.
Esophagus (gullet)
A small, pear-shaped muscular sac, located under the right lobe of the liver, in which bile secreted by the liver is stored until needed by the body for digestion
Gallbladder
a solid crystal deposit that forms in the gallbladder which can migrate to other parts of the digestive tract and cause severe pain with life-threatening complications.
Gallstones
a general term denoting a recess or sacculation, as of the colon.
Haustra
burning sensation in the chest that can extend to the neck, throat, and face; it is worsened by bending or lying down. It is the primary symptom of gastroesophageal reflux, which is the movement of stomach acid into the esophagus. On rare occasions, it is due to gastritis (stomach lining inflammation).
Heartburn
Enlarged veins in the anus or lower rectum. They often go unnoticed and usually clear up after a few days,but can cause long-lasting discomfort, bleeding and be excruciatingly painful.
Hemorrhoids
A circulating lipoprotein that picks up cholesterol in the arteries and deposits it in the liver for reprocessing or excretion.
High-density Lipoproteins (HDLs)
The bilabial prominence of the terminal ileum into the large intestine at the cecocolic junction in cadavers; it appears as a truncated cone with a star-shaped orifice in the living.
Ileocecal Valve
The distal portion of the small intestine, extending from the jejunum to the cecum.
Ileum