ANATOMY OF THE PLEURA
Section snippets
EMBRYOLOGY
In the human embryo, the primitive mesoderm on both sides of the notochord divides first into the medial segmented and lateral nonsegmented plates. The medial segmented plates later develop into the protecting skull and vertebrae around the brain and spinal cord, and the ribs and thick muscles of the dorsal body wall.
The lateral nonsegmented plates, on the other hand, split into an internal splanchnopleure (the precursor of organs) and a lateral somatopleure (the precursor of the body wall) to
THE KAMPMEIER'S FOCI
As early as 1928, Kampmeier discovered small milky spots in the dorsal and caudal portion of the mediastinum in rats and humans.8 By scanning electron microscopy, they appear as irregularly elevated mound-like structures.42 This focus is covered by cuboidal mesothelial cells with stomas and has an aggregate of lymphocytes, histiocytes, plasma cells, and other mononuclear cells around central lymphatic or vascular vessels. Similar foci were later found in the lower thoracic cavity of the dog and
SUMMARY
The lung and heart, the vital organs, have to be protected and also have to move and change volume continuously to function. For the best protection and function of the lung, the thorax is shaped almost like a bellows with the diaphragm as the moving part. Furthermore, the outer surface of the lung and the inner surface of the protective thoracic cage are covered by an elastic, serous, and lubricating membrane to form the pleural cavity. This is almost like inserting a sealed-wet and
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Address reprint requests to Nai-San Wang, MD, PhD, Dean's Office, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, 1 Ta Hsueh Road, Tainan, Taiwan 70101
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National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan