Meckel's diverticulum

Meckel's diverticulum
Schematic drawing of a Meckel's diverticulum with a part of the small intestine.
SpecialtyMedical genetics Edit this on Wikidata
Named afterJohann Friedrich Meckel

A Meckel's diverticulum, a true congenital diverticulum, is a slight bulge in the small intestine present at birth and a vestigial remnant of the vitelline duct. It is the most common malformation of the gastrointestinal tract and is present in approximately 2% of the population,[1] with males more frequently experiencing symptoms.

Meckel's diverticulum was first explained by Fabricius Hildanus in the sixteenth century and later named after Johann Friedrich Meckel, who described the embryological origin of this type of diverticulum in 1809.[2][3]

  1. ^ Elsayes KM, Menias CO, Harvin HJ, Francis IR (July 2007). "Imaging manifestations of Meckel's diverticulum". AJR Am J Roentgenol. 189 (1): 81–8. doi:10.2214/AJR.06.1257. PMID 17579156. S2CID 45677981.
  2. ^ Meckel's diverticulum at Who Named It?
  3. ^ Meckel, J.F. (1809). "Über die Divertikel am Darmkanal". Archiv für die Physiologie. 9: 421–453.