Digestive System

Digestive tract is the same as alimentary tract, and includes the entire passage for food through the body, including mouth, oral cavity (both vestibule of mouth and cavitas oris propria), oropharynx, esophagus, stomach, duodenum, jejunum, ileum, colon, rectum, and anal canal.

Digestive system includes the digestive tract, as well as the associated organs of digestion, including tongue, teeth, salivary glands, liver, exocrine pancreas, gallbladder, and biliary tract.

Gastrointestinal tract has two meanings in common usage. One that does and one that does not include the esophagus. The usage that includes the esophagus would more correctly be named esophago-gastrointestinal tract. Endoscopists frequently use this meaning, even though it is contrary to some dictionary definitions and does not follow strict lexical interpretation (which does not include the esophagus).

Upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract. When describing upper GI bleeding and upper GI radiographic and endoscopic procedures the upper GI tract includes the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum. The upper GI tract does not include the more restricted stomach-intestine entity.

Lower gastrointestinal (GI) tract. When describing lower GI bleeding, lower GI radiographic and endoscopic procedures, and lower GI output from ileostomies and colostomies, the lower GI tract includes the jejunum, ileum, cecum, colon, rectum and anal canal. The ligament of Treitz may be used as the division between upper and lower GI tracts (and the division between the duodenum and jejunum).

Also, since the upper GI tract is said to end at the duodenum-jejunum junction, and there is no concept meaning middle GI tract, the jejunum can be inferred to be in the lower GI tract.

Information

See J Vasc Interv Radiol 9:747 for an example of inclusion of the jejunum and distal tract as part of the lower GI tract.

Upper aerodigestive tract

The SNOMED CT concepts 119253004 |Upper aerodigestive tract structure (body structure)| and 361922007 |Entire upper aerodigestive tract (body structure)| have the meaning based on the following reference: Cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract constitute approximately 4% of all malignancies. These include cancer of the lip, tongue, major salivary glands, gums and adjacent oral cavity tissues, floor of the mouth, tonsils, oropharynx, nasopharynx, hypopharynx and other oral regions, nasal cavity, accessory sinuses, middle ear, and larynx (Upper aerodigestive tract cancers, Cancer 1995 Jan 1;75 (1 Suppl): 147-53). This definition matches the tumors included in the CAP Cancer Checklist for upper aerodigestive tumors. The esophagus, or at least the cervical esophagus, may be included, but not in SNOMED CT.

Biliary tract

Biliary tract includes the gallbladder, intrahepatic and extrahepatic bile ducts, and common bile duct. It does not include the liver. SNOMED CT uses biliary system as a synonym for biliary tract. SNOMED CT has another concept that does include the liver, 732049009 |Entire liver and biliary system (body structure)|.

Mouth

Mouth has several different meanings including mouth region, oral region of the face, and rima oris.

Mouth region includes structures surrounding the oral cavity, as well as structures of the oral region of the face.

Modeling

Use mouth region for most disorders with a finding site of mouth.

Oral region of face includes the skin and subcutaneous tissue of the lips and perioral region, the orbicularis oris muscle, and the vessels and nerves in these structures.

Rima oris is the opening of the mouth.

Tongue

The four regional parts of the tongue are the ventrum (inferior surface), dorsum, root, and body. The root of the tongue is the posterior third, the dorsal surface of which forms the anterior wall of the oropharynx. The root of the tongue rests on the floor of the mouth. The nerves and vessels that supply the intrinsic muscles of the tongue traverse the root of the tongue.

Colorectum

The terms colorectal and colorectum, commonly used by pathologists, are included in descriptions for concepts referring to neoplasms modeled with 1285733009 |Structure of cecum and/or colon and/or rectum (body structure)|. 1285733009 |Structure of cecum and/or colon and/or rectum (body structure)| is needed because neoplasms are the same from the cecum to rectum and are considered as a group in cancer synoptic reporting protocols. Note, there is no consensus concerning the definition of colon in the literature and between different domains.

Search