The right and left paracolic gutters are peritoneal recesses on the posterior abdominal wall lying alongside the ascending and descending colon.
Left paracolic gutter ct.
Infected peritoneal fluids get a passageway through these gutters to other compartments of the abdominal cavity.
The main paracolic gutter lies lateral to the colon on each side.
The characteristic ct appearance consists of an abnormal cluster or saclike mass of dilated small bowel loops lying between the pancreas and stomach to the left of the ligament of treitz fig 5.
It has a variable length and can be seen at a level just below the liver or spleen 2.
The left lateral paracolic gutter.
A less obvious medial paracolic gutter may be formed especially on the right side if the colon possesses a short mesentery for part of its length.
The inframesocolic space also contains paracolic gutters which are peritoneal recesses that are inferolateral extensions of their corresponding inframesocolic spaces on the posterior abdominal wall lateral to the ascending and descending colon respectively.
The paracolic gutter is associated with a subphrenic abscess.
The right and left paracolic gutters are peritoneal recesses on the posterior abdominal wall lying alongside the ascending and descending colon.
Fluid in the pelvis may ascend the left paracolic gutter 5 but is stopped by the phrenicocolic ligament pcl.
It is seen at the lateral fusion of anterior and posterior perirenal fasciae at the level of the ascending and descending colons.
Fluid in the right paracolic gutter 6 ascends to morison s pouch 7 and then to the subphrenic space 8 where it is stopped at the bare area ba of the liver l.
Right supramesocolic spaces the right supramesocolic spaces include the right subphrenic subdiaphragmatic space the morison pouch subhepatic or hepatorenal space and the lesser sac omental bursa.
The phrenicocolic ligament is a relative but incomplete impediment to the spread of pathologic processes from the left paracolic gutter to the left subphrenic space.
The left medial paracolic gutter.
Key signs of peritoneal carcinomatosis.
A less obvious medial paracolic gutter may be formed especially on the right side if the colon possesses a short mesentery for part of its length.
It can be seen in ct on axial cuts.
