Where it is
Dorsal to the trachea in the neck, then through the mediastinum to the esophageal hiatus of the diaphragm.
- Layer
- Organs
- System
- Digestive system
- Region
- Neck and thorax
What it is and what it does
The esophagus links the pharynx to the stomach. In the neck it lies dorsal to the trachea; in the thorax it passes through the cranial mediastinum, then dorsal to the heart and to the tracheal bifurcation, in the middle mediastinum, and leaves the thorax between the two crura of the diaphragm, through the esophageal hiatus, next to the aorta, which has its own hiatus.
Worth remembering
The aorta, the great artery, passes through the diaphragm through its own opening, alongside.
Names
- Latin term: oesophagus.
- In Romanian: Esofagul (Romanian page).