Your large intestine surrounds your small intestine, lying loosely around the edges of your abdominal cavity. Your rectum, at the end of it, curls under your abdominal organs, toward your anus. It exists in the pelvic cavity between your abdomen and pelvis floor muscles. The top connects to your sigmoid colon and the bottom connects to your anus.
It averages between 10 and 15 centimeters, which is about 5 or 6 inches long. When its muscles activate to move waste through, it can contract and shorten, like a slinky. Like the rest of the large intestine, it’s about 3 inches wide, which makes it about half as wide as it is long. But it also stretches wider than the rest of the intestine to accommodate more waste, acting as a reservoir.
What are the parts of the rectum?
The rectum has a slight “S” shape, with two bends in it. The one near the top (sacral flexure) follows the curve of your spine, while the one near the bottom (anorectal flexure) marks the transition from rectum to anus. These bends help control continence (holding your poop in). The rectum also has segments, like a worm, which are separated by horizontal folds in the inner lining called the valves of Houston.
The three or four chambers of the rectum help to control the movement of contents through it. The last chamber, called the rectal ampulla, is the final reservoir for poop before it comes out. When this chamber fills, nerve fibers that detect stretch in the rectal wall (stretch receptors) communicate to your central nervous system that it’s time to defecate. Increasing pressure will make it increasingly hard to hold it in.
The rectum is the lower part of the large intestine that connects to the sigmoid colon. It is about 15 cm (6 in) long. It receives waste from the colon and stores it until it passes out of the body through the anus.
The colon averages 150 cms. (60 inches) in length. The ascending colon is about eight inches in length. The transverse colon is usually over 18 inches in length.
Fecal impaction is the result of severe constipation, when you're unable to regularly pass poop (stool or feces) and it backs up inside your large intestine (colon). Fecal impaction can also be defined by your inability to sense and respond to the presence of stool in your rectum.
“If the blood is more black or tar-like, that might signal an issue in the small intestine or stomach.” If you only have blood on the tissue when you wipe but not in your stool, this is more likely to be hemorrhoids or anal fissures, which should be confirmed by your doctor.
Colonoscopy (koh-luh-NAH-skuh-pee) lets the physician look inside your entire large intestine, from the lowest part, the rectum, all the way up through the colon to the lower end of the small intestine. The procedure is used as a tool for routine colon cancer screening and prevention in people beginning at age 45.
Usually, about one-fourth to one-third of the colon is removed, depending on the size and location of the cancer. The remaining sections of colon are then reattached. At least 12 nearby lymph nodes are also removed so they can be checked for cancer. If all of the colon is removed, it's called a total colectomy.
The sigmoid is the lower third of your large intestine. It's connected to your rectum, and it's the part of your body where fecal matter stays until you go to the bathroom. If you have a sigmoid problem, you're likely to feel pain in your lower abdomen.
Ascending colon – runs up the right side of the abdomen. It is connected to the small intestine by a section of bowel called the caecum. Transverse colon – runs across the body from right to left, under the stomach. Descending colon – runs down the left side of the abdomen.
People should see a doctor urgently if their stools are black or dark red or if they have bloody diarrhea. Non-stop bleeding is a medical emergency. A person should call 911 or go to the emergency room if there is a lot of blood or if they are bleeding non-stop.
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