Vermiform Appendix - Size and Location in Humans

Size and Location in Humans

The appendix averages 11 cm in length but can range from 2 to 20 cm. The diameter of the appendix is usually between 7 and 8 mm. The longest appendix ever removed measured 26 cm from a patient in Zagreb, Croatia. The appendix is located in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen, near the right hip bone. Its position within the abdomen corresponds to a point on the surface known as McBurney's point (see below). While the base of the appendix is at a fairly constant location, 2 cm below the ileocecal valve, the location of the tip of the appendix can vary from being retrocecal (behind the cecum) (74%) to being in the pelvis to being extraperitoneal. In rare individuals with situs inversus, the appendix may be located in the lower left side.

Read more about this topic:  Vermiform Appendix

Famous quotes containing the words size and/or humans:

    To believe her limited in range because she was harmonious in method is as sensible as to imagine that when the Atlantic Ocean is as smooth as a mill-pond it shrinks to the size of a mill-pond.
    Rebecca West (1892–1983)

    So they took soot from the kiln, and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses threw it in the air, and it caused festering boils on humans and animals.
    Bible: Hebrew, Exodus 9:10.