title: An anatomical study of the intersigmoid fossa and applications for internal hernia surgery.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To improve the knowledge of the morphometry and the surrounding anatomical structures of the intersigmoid fossa and to determine possible surgical applications.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty eight adult cadavers (29 female and 19 male; mean age 83 years) underwent dissection in the Laboratoire d'Anatomie des Alpes Francaises. Two injections in the right carotid resulted in a total body concentration of formalin of 1.3 %. The study parameters were the dimensions of the intersigmoid fossa orifice and the fossa's relationship to surrounding structures. Data were recorded and analyzed using Microsoft Office Excel (MS Cerp). A Pearson coefficient r was used to examine the correlation between the length of colon and the ISF volume.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The intersigmoid fossa was present in 75 % of cases (n = 36). The average dimensions for the transverse diameter, longitudinal diameter, and the depth were, respectively, 20.5 ± 0.2, 20.3 ± 0.13, and 26.8 ± 0.2 mm. The primary and secondary roots bordering this fossa measured on average 59.1 ± 0.1 and 48.3 ± 0.13 mm. In 13.9 % of cases (n = 5), the maximum depth was >40 mm and in 16.7 % of cases (n = 6), one of the diameters of the orifice entry of the fossa was >40 mm. The ureter and external iliac artery were the most frequently encountered structures during the dissection of the fundus of the intersigmoid fossa.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The intersigmoid fossa remains present in most of the reported dissections of cadavers. It constitutes an essential landmark in the surgery of the sigmoid colon due to its deep structural relationship with the left ureter and external iliac artery.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'anatomie des Alpes françaises (LADAF) de la faculté de médecine, Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France. som_roll@yahoo.fr.|Laboratoire d'anatomie, Université Cheickh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal. som_roll@yahoo.fr.|Institut Supérieur des Sciences de la Santé, Université Polytechnique, Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso. som_roll@yahoo.fr.
authors.forename: O R
authors.initials: OR
authors.lastname: Somé
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'anatomie, Université Cheickh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Ndoye
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'anatomie des Alpes françaises (LADAF) de la faculté de médecine, Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yohann
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'anatomie des Alpes françaises (LADAF) de la faculté de médecine, Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nolan
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'anatomie des Alpes françaises (LADAF) de la faculté de médecine, Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Roccia
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'anatomie des Alpes françaises (LADAF) de la faculté de médecine, Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: W P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Dakoure
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'anatomie des Alpes françaises (LADAF) de la faculté de médecine, Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chaffanjon
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002102:Cadaver; D012809:Colon, Sigmoid / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D004210:Dissection; D005260:Female; D046449:Hernia, Abdominal / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
keywords: Dimensions; Intersigmoid recess; Relations; Sigmoid fossa