Taber's Medical Dictionary
organ
To view the entire topic, please sign in or purchase a subscription.
Nursing Central is the award-winning, complete mobile solution for nurses and students. Look up information on diseases, tests, and procedures; then consult the database with 5,000+ drugs or refer to 65,000+ dictionary terms. Explore these free sample topics:
-- The first section of this topic is shown below --
(or′găn )
[L. organum fr Gr. organon, tool, (musical) instrument, (bodily) organ]
A body structure made of several tissues that all contribute to specific functions. Many organs occur in pairs. In such pairs, one organ may be extirpated and the remaining one can perform all necessary functions peculiar to it. One third to two fifths of some organs may be removed without loss of function necessary to support life. SEE TABLE: Size, Weight, and Capacity of Various Organs and Parts of the Adult Body ♂ Male ♀ Female
Size, Weight, and Capacity of Various Organs and Parts of the Adult Body ♂ Male ♀ Female
| Description | Size | Weight | Capacity |
| Adrenal gland | 5 cm high | 5 g | |
| 3 cm across | |||
| 1 cm thick | |||
| Bladder | 12 cm in diameter | 500 mL (when moderately full) | |
| Blood volume | ♂ 4-6 L | ||
| ♀ 3-5 L | |||
| Brain | ♂ 1240-1680 g | ||
| ♀ 1130-1570 g | |||
| Ear, external canal | 2.5 cm long (from concha) | ||
| Esophagus | 23-25 cm | ||
| Eye | 23.5 mm vertical diameter | ||
| 24 mm anteroposterior diameter | |||
| Fallopian tube | 10 cm | ||
| Gallbladder | 7-10 cm long | 30-50 mL | |
| 3 cm wide | |||
| Heart | 12 × 8-9 × 6 cm | ♂280-340 g | |
| ♀230-280 g | |||
| Intestines—small | Variable | ||
| 6-7 m long | |||
| Intestines—large | 1.5 m long | ||
| Intestines—vermiform appendix | 2-20 cm long, average 9 cm | ||
| Intestines—rectum | 12 cm long | ||
| Kidney | 11 cm long | ♂ 150 g | |
| 6 cm broad | ♀ 135 g | ||
| 3 cm thick | |||
| Larynx | ♂ 44 × 43 × 36 mm | ||
| ♀ 36 × 41 × 26 mm | |||
| Liver | ♂ 1.4-1.8 kg | 6500 mL | |
| ♀ 1.0-2.5 kg | |||
| Lung | Right 625 g | ||
| Left 565 g | |||
| Ovaries | 3 × 1.5 × 1 cm | 2-3.5 g | |
| Pancreas | 15 cm long | ♂ 74-106 g | |
| ♀ 70-100 g | |||
| Parathyroid | 6 × 3-4 × 1-2 mm | 50 mg | |
| Pharynx | 12.5 cm long | ||
| Prostate | 2 × 4 × 3 cm | 8 g | |
| Skeleton | Average adult male, 4957 g | ||
| Skull | Average (without teeth), 642 g | Variable ♂ 406 mL ♀ 207 mL | |
| Spinal cord | 42-45 cm long | 30 g | |
| Spleen | 12 × 7 × 3-4 cm | 150 g | |
| 80-300 g | |||
| Decreases with age | |||
| Stomach | Variable | Variable | |
| 25 cm long | 1500 mL | ||
| 10 cm wide | |||
| Testes | 4-5 × 2.5 × 3 cm | 10.5-14 g | |
| Thoracic duct | 38-45 cm long | ||
| Thymus | Newborn, 10.9 g | ||
| 10-15 yr, 29.5 g | |||
| 20-25 yr, 18.6 g | |||
| Thyroid | Each lobe 5 × 3 × 2 cm | 30 g total | |
| Trachea | 11 cm long | ||
| 2-2.5 cm in diameter | |||
| Ureter | 28-34 cm long | ||
| Urethra | ♂ 17.5-20 cm long | ||
| ♀ 4 cm long | |||
| Uterus | 7.5 × 5.0 × 2.5 cm | 30-40 g (nonpregnant) | |
| Vagina | Anterior wall length 7.5 cm | ||
| Posterior wall length 9.0 cm |
-- To view the remaining sections of this topic, please sign in or purchase a subscription --