Abdominopelvic Regions and Quadrants

Hi Readers,

My name is Franz Devantier, creator of this blog.  I am an Herbalist, who uses local and indigenous herbs when available, in preference to imported herbs.  Because Herbalists deal with living human beings, it is important to have an understanding of Anatomy and Physiology, as well as many other related subjects. 

Abdominopelvic Regions and Quadrants

The Abdominopelvic cavity is a large cavity.  It extends from below the diaphragm, right down to the cavity that is formed by the Pelvis.  There are many organs contained in this cavity, so it becomes useful to divide this body cavity into smaller regions or areas to make it easier to study.  There are two main methods of dividing the Abdominopelvic region, and both of them focus on the belly button or the umbilical region as an anchoring point.  The first method divides it into nine abdominopelvic regions, and the second method divides it into quadrants.

Nine Abdominopelvic regions:

Imagine this, you draw two horizontal lines across the region, one a little above the Umbilical region and one a bit below it.  Draw these two imaginary lines in such a way that the abdominopelvic region is more or less divided into three equal sized areas with the belly button right in the middle.  So you can imagine those three areas from where the diaphragm starts, which is more or less located where the heart is, and down to the bottom of the pelvis.  Move these imaginary lines around, until you have the naval more or less in the middle of three equally sized areas.

Now we are going to draw two imaginary vertical lines one on each side of the naval which should divide the region into more or less three equal sizes.  What you now have is something that looks like the grid lines of a game of tic-tac-toe, drawn over the abdominopelvic cavity.  This divides it into nine regions.  The central region is the Umbilical region.  Make sure that you have the Umbilical in the middle of the central square.  Now let’s describe these nine regions, using the Umbilical region as an anchor point for determining the other eight regions.  I am just going to describe the organs that are superior to the surface or the first organs that you will see once you look into these areas.  Organs like the kidneys and the spleen which are deeper to the surface I will leave out for now.

Umbilical Region

This is the centremost region which surrounds the Umbilicus or Navel.  In this region we have the small intestine and of course the navel.

Epigastric Region

This is the square that is located directly above or superior to the umbilical region.

Epi        = upon or above

Gastric = stomach

So the epigastric region is the region upon or above the stomach.  In this region you will find the lower part of the stomach, in the middle of the region.  At the bottom of the region, the transverse colon of the large intestine passes through.  On the right top corner of the region is the liver, and at the top of the region is the diaphragm.

Hypogastric or Pubic region

Hypo = below

This region is located below or inferior to the Umbilical region.  At the top of the region we find part of the small intestine.  About in the middle of the Hypogastric region on the right had side we find the appendix.  At the bottom of the region you will find the urinary bladder.

So now we have defined the row of block running from the top to the bottom of the abdominopelvic cavity.  All we have to do now is define the three outer regions on the right hand side, and the three outer regions on the left hand side.

Right Iliac or Inguinal region

Located lateral or to the side of the Hypogastric region, on the right hand side of the body.

Iliac = superior or the upper part of the hip bone.

So obviously we will find the hip bone, specifically the Iliac region on the right hand side of this region.  More to the upper left hand corner, but occupying a large portion of the region is the ascending colon of the large intesting.  You will also find the Cecum here, and in the top left corner a small amount of the small intestine.

Left Iliac or Inguinal region

Located lateral or to the side of the Hypogastric region, on the left hand side of the body.

Iliac = superior or the upper part of the hip bone.

So we will find the Iliac region of the hipbone, on the left hand side of this region.  More or less in the top middle of this region we find the descending colon of the large intestine, and below that the initial part of the sigmoid colon.  In the top right hand corner you will find a small amount of the small intestine.

Right Lumbar region

This is the region that lies lateral to the umbilical region, on the right hand side of the body.

Lumbus = loin.  In popular literature, loin cloths would probably be more descriptive of what they cover, if they were called Pubic cloths.  On the right hand side of the region you will find the Ascending colon, and the rest is made up of the small intestine.

Left Lumbar region

This is the region that lies lateral to the umbilical region, on the left hand side of the body.

Lumbus = loin.  On the left hand side of the region you will find the Descending colon, and the rest of the region is made up of the small intestine.

Right Hypochondriac region

This is the region that is lateral to the epigastric region on the right hand side.

Chondro = cartilage

To the top and above this region you will find a lot of cartilage associated with the rib structures.  Mainly in this region you will find the liver, covered by the ribs, and part of the large intestine and small intestine. 

Hypochondriacs are named after this region of the abdominopelvic region.  If you think about it, in this region you have the liver, and on the left hand side the spline, parts of the large intestine pass through, as well as parts of the small intestine.  The kidneys are close to this area, and also the lungs dip down into the top area of this region, sitting just above the diaphragm.  You have the ribs and on the left hand side the stomach.  So problems in the hypochondriac regions could point to many possible medical conditions.  The left and right hypochondriac regions are very central, as is the epigastric region.  In fact the perfect region for a Hypochondriac to indicate areas of discomfort in, so that is one way to potentially recognise them.  

Left Hypochondriac region

This is the region that is lateral to the epigastric region on the left hand side.

Mainly in this region you will find the stomach, covered by the ribs in this region, and part of the large intestine and small intestine.  Also deeper into the body you will find the spleen.

So that puts this large and complex cavity into perspective, and if you name one of the nine areas, you will immediately know exactly what part of the body you are dealing with, and what organs are associated with it etc.  However in common practice we find that medical personnel tend to make use of a simpler scheme to describe the conditions of the abdominopelvic region, the abdominopelvic quadrants.

Abdominopelvic Quadrants:

In this scheme the abdominopelvic region is divided into an upper and lower half by a transverse or horizontal line passing through the naval.  Another imaginary vertical line on the median sagittal plane passes through the naval or umbilicus at right angles to the first imaginary line.  This line divides the body into a left side and a right side.

So the quadrants are named: Right Upper Quadrant (RUQ), Left Upper Quadrant (LUQ), Right Lower Quadrant (RLQ), and Left Lower Quadrant (LLQ).  Notice how the naval or the umbilicus has been used to anchor the position of the quadrants.  I am not naming all of the organs in these areas, but just the ones that are the most obvious and closer to the surface.   

In the RUQ, we find the top half of the diaphragm, most of the liver, and the ribs covering the liver, part of the lower stomach, and part of the ascending colon, and the transverse colon, as well as some of the small intestines.

In the LUQ, we find most of the stomach, the left hand side of the diaphragm, the ribs, and part of the transverse colon, and the descending colon, as well as some of the small intestines.  The spleen would be located deeper into the body in this quadrant.

In the RLQ, we find a large portion of the small intestine, the ascending colon, as well as the appendix, cecum, and half of the urinary bladder.

In the LLQ, we find a large portion of the small intestine, the descending colon, sigmoid colon, and half of the urinary bladder.

Franz Devantier.