diverticulum

A diverticulum (plural: diverticula) is medical or biological term for an outpouching of a hollow (or a fluid filled) structure in the body.

In medicine the term usually implies that the structure is not normally present, i.e., pathological. However, in the embryonic stage, some normal structures begin development as a diverticulum arising from another structure.

An alphabetical listing of some frequently encountered diverticula follows:

Pathological

• Bladder diverticulum: Balloon-like growths on the bladder commonly associated with a chronic outflow obstruction, such as benign prostatic hypertrophy in older males. Usually found in pairs on opposite sides of the bladder, bladder diverticula are often surgically removed to prevent infection, rupture, or even cancer.
• Cardiac diverticulum: A very rare congenital malformation of the heart that is usually benign ^[1]
• Colonic diverticula: These can become infected (see diverticulitis) and can perforate, requiring surgery
  

  

  Large bowel (sigmoid colon) showing multiple diverticula. Note how the diverticula appear on either side of the longitudinal muscle bundle (taenium).
• Diverticulum of Kommerell: unusual nomenclature, in that focal dilatations of a blood vessel are properly referred to as aneurysms
• Duodenal & Jejunal diverticul(um|a): congenital lesions, may be a source of bacterial overgrowth, may perforate and may result in abscesses
• Epiphrenic diverticulum: due to dysfunction of the lower esophageal sphincter, as in achalasia
• Gastric diverticulae - "Although usually asymptomatic, they may cause vague epigastric pain. These lesions may be confused radiologically for gastric ulcers or cancers. Endoscopically, they may be confused for paraesophageal hernias."^[2]
• Killian-Jamieson diverticulum
• Meckel's diverticulum: a persistent portion of the omphalomesenteric duct present in 2% of the population
• Rokitansky-Aschoff sinuses: in the gallbladder due to chronic cholecystitis
• Traction esophageal diverticulum: due to scarring from mediastinal or pulmonary tuberculosis
• Urethral diverticulum: congenital in males, post-infectious in females
• Zenker's diverticulum: a diverticulum of the mucosa of the pharynx affecting adults

Most of these pathological types of diverticulum are capable of harboring an enterolith. If the enterolith stays in place, it may cause no problems, but a large enterlith expelled from a diverticulum into the lumen can cause obstruction (see Enterolith).

Embryological

• The Kidneys, originally diverticula in the development of the urinary and reproductive organs
• The lungs, originally diverticula forming off of the ventral foregut.
• The thymus appears in the form of two flask-shape diverticula, which arise from the third branchial pouch (pharyngeal pouch)of the endoderm.

Footnotes