Is pancreas retroperitoneal ?

There is a great confusion among folks whether pancreas is retroperitoneal or intraperitoneal organ. Let’s find out.

Yes, pancreas is a retroperitoneal organ . The head , neck , body, uncinate process and tail (all parts) of pancreas are retroperitoneal . The tail is secondary retroperitoneal organ which means that the tail is intraperitoneal during the embryonic stage but it is retroperitoneal afterward.

To know the details let’s analyze things minutely.

What is intraperitoneal and retroperitoneal organ?

Intraperitoneal organs are the organ that are enclosed by the visceral peritoneum on the both anterior and posterior side. Examples of the Intraperitoneal organ with mnemonic is (SALTD SPRSS)

• S: stomach
• A: appendix
• L: liver
• T: transverse colon
• D: duodenum (first part)
• S: small intestines (jejunum and ileum)
• P: pancreas tail – intraperitoneal during embryonic stage
• R: rectum (upper third)
• S: spleen
• S: sigmoid colon

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Retroperitoneal organs are the organ in the abdomen that are covered by the peritoneum only on anterior side. These organs have fascia transversalis in the posterior side. An easy way to remember the retroperitoneal organs is by using the mnemonic SAD PUCKER:

• S = Suprarenal (adrenal) glands
• A = Aorta/Inferior Vena Cava
• D = Duodenum (second and third segments)
• P = Pancreas
• U = Ureters
• C = Colon (ascending and descending only)
• K = Kidneys
• E = Esophagus
• R = Rectum

Is pancreas retroperitoneal ?

Yes, pancreas is retroperitoneal. The head , neck, uncinate process of pancreas and body are primary retroperitoneal organ that is these part of the pancreas are in retroperitoneum from embryo to an adult.

But the tail of the embryo is a secondary retroperitoneal organ which means that during the embryonic phase the tail of embryo is intraperitoneal but as the as the fetus grows the tail becomes retroperitoneal.

Conclusion

I would like to conclude by help of the following multiple choice question:

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SACHET SUBEDI

Sachet Subedi is 3rd year medical student from Institute Of Medicine, Maharajgunj . He writes on health, diet, wellness and science. He likes cricket and loves to study books and research paper on productivity, diet , health and wellness.