Skip to content
EasyAnatomyLab
Menu

Mesentery of small intestine: anatomy, location and function

The mesentery is a broad double fold of peritoneum that suspends the jejunum and ileum from the posterior abdominal wall. It anchors the small intestine while carrying blood vessels, nerves, lymphatics and fat to and from it.

Loading 3D model…
Skin0%
Muscles100%

Structures

Loading… Click the model or search.

Highlighted in the model: Mesentery of small intestine. Click any part to read about it, or switch off “Highlight topic” to see the whole body. 3D data: BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0; meshes simplified and recoloured. The model is an adult male.

Mesentery of small intestine at a glance

What it is
The mesentery is a broad double fold of peritoneum that suspends the jejunum and ileum from the posterior abdominal wall.
Location
Its root is about 15 cm long and runs obliquely from the duodenojejunal flexure at the left of L2 to the ileocecal junction near the right sacroiliac joint.
Function
It anchors the small intestine while carrying blood vessels, nerves, lymphatics and fat to and from it.
Body system
Digestive · single, midline structure
FMA ID
FMA14643 (Foundational Model of Anatomy)

Key facts

  • Contains the superior mesenteric artery and vein branches and lymph nodes.
  • The fan-shaped mesentery lets the intestines move freely.

Clinical relevance

Volvulus around the mesenteric axis can cut off blood supply to the bowel.

Structures next to the mesentery of small intestine

The nearest named structures in the 3D model, measured from the centre of each part:

References

  1. Foundational Model of Anatomy: Mesentery of small intestine (FMA14643). EMBL-EBI Ontology Lookup Service.
  2. OpenStax. Anatomy and Physiology 2e, §23.1 Overview of the Digestive System. Rice University, 2022.
  3. Mitsuhashi N. et al. (2009). BodyParts3D: 3D structure database for anatomical concepts. Nucleic Acids Research 37, D782–D785. Data © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0.

Explore the whole body in the interactive 3D human anatomy model, or browse the A–Z list of human structures.