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The cecum or caecum is an pouch within the peritoneum that is considered to be the beginning of the large intestine. It is typically located on the right side of the body (the same side of the body as the appendix, to which it is joined). The word cecum (/ˈskəm/, plural ceca /ˈskə/) stems from the Latin caecus meaning blind.

Tractus intestinalis cecum.svg
The cecum, here in red, lies at the start of the large intestines, which are shown with the rest of the human gastrointestinal tract in this image.
Superior ileocecal fossa
(cecum labeled at bottom left)
Part ofLarge intestine
LocationLower right part of the abdomen.
Anatomical terminology

It receives chyme from the ileum, and connects to the ascending colon of the large intestine. It is separated from the ileum by the ileocecal valve (ICV) or Bauhin's valve. It is also separated from the colon by the cecocolic junction. While the cecum is usually intraperitoneal, the ascending colon is retroperitoneal.[1]

In herbivores, the cecum stores food material where bacteria are able to break down the cellulose. This function no longer occurs in the human cecum (see appendix), so in humans it is simply a dead-end pouch forming a part of the large intestine.



Inner diameters of different sections of the large intestine, with cecum (at bottom left) measuring on average 8.7 cm (range 8.0-10.5 cm).[2]


The cecum and appendix are formed by the enlargement of the postarterial segment of the midgut loop. The proximal part of the bud grows rapidly to form the cecum. The lateral wall of the cecum grows much more rapidly than the medial wall, with the result that the point of attachment of the appendix comes to lie on the medial side.[citation needed]



The term cecum comes from the Latin (intestinum) caecum, literally "blind intestine", here in the sense "blind gut" or "cul de sac".[citation needed] It is a direct translation from Ancient Greek τυφλὸν (ἔντερον) - typhlòn (énteron). Thus the inflammation of the cecum is called typhlitis.




Clinical significanceEdit


Neutropenic enterocolitis (typhlitis) is the condition of inflammation of the cecum, primarily caused by bacterial infections.

Over 99% of the bacteria in the gut are anaerobes, but in the cecum, aerobic bacteria reach high densities.[4]

Other animalsEdit

Gastric cecum of dissected cockroach. Scale bar, 2 mm.


Most mammalian herbivores have a relatively large cecum, hosting a large number of bacteria, which aid in the enzymatic breakdown of plant materials such as cellulose; in many species, it is considerably wider than the colon. In contrast, obligatory carnivores, whose diets contain little or no plant material, have a reduced cecum, which is often partially or wholly replaced by the appendix.[5] Mammalian species which do not develop a cecum include raccoons, bears, and the red panda. Over 99% of the bacteria in the gut flora are anaerobes,[7][8][9][10][11] but in the cecum, aerobic bacteria reach high densities.[7]

Many fish have a number of small outpocketings, called pyloric ceca, along their intestine; despite the name they are not homologous with the cecum of amniotes, and their purpose is to increase the overall area of the digestive epithelium.[5] Some invertebrates, such as squid,[12] may also have structures with the same name, but these have no relationship with those of vertebrates.


See alsoEdit


  1. ^ "The Large Intestine".
  3. ^ Taylor, Tim. "Anatomy and Physiology Instructor". Howtomedia, Inc. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  4. ^ Sherwood, Linda; Willey, Joanne; Woolverton, Christopher (2013). Prescott's Microbiology (9th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill. pp. 713–21. ISBN 9780073402406. OCLC 886600661.
  5. ^ a b c Romer, Alfred Sherwood; Parsons, Thomas S. (1977). The Vertebrate Body. Philadelphia, PA: Holt-Saunders International. pp. 353–54. ISBN 0-03-910284-X.
  6. ^ Clench, Mary H.; Mathias, John R. (1995). The Avian Cecum: A Review. Ann Arbor, MI: Wilson Bulletin. pp. 93–121, vol. 107(1) March.
  7. ^ a b Guarner F, Malagelada JR (February 2003). "Gut flora in health and disease". Lancet. 361 (9356): 512–19. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(03)12489-0. PMID 12583961.
  10. ^ Beaugerie L, Petit JC (April 2004). "Microbial-gut interactions in health and disease. Antibiotic-associated diarrhoea". Best Pract Res Clin Gastroenterol. 18 (2): 337–52. doi:10.1016/j.bpg.2003.10.002. PMID 15123074.

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