Eventration of Diaphragm: A Rare Cadaveric Case Report

Abstract

The respiratory diaphragm is a barrier between the thoracic and abdominal cavities. It is a chief skeletal muscle of respiration that plays a critical role in the process of inspiration. The defective diaphragm may be clinically present with or without obvious symptoms. Depending on the severity of its defects, it can lead to mild to severe fatal consequences. Protrusion of abdominal contents into the thoracic cavity through the weakened or defective part of the diaphragm is known as a diaphragmatic hernia. Such herniations will exist either in the form of congenital birth defects or acquired defects in the diaphragm. An acquired hernia may be due to spontaneous or iatrogenic causative factors. Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH) can occur due to the disruption of various cellular mechanisms involved in organogenesis during the gestation period. Such herniations may exist with or without content protrusions into the cavity of the thorax, later referred to as Eventration of the Diaphragm (ED). In the Department of Anatomy at JSS Medical College, Mysuru, Karnataka, India, a rare case of diaphragmatic eventration was noticed in a male cadaver aged about 70 years, during the routine dissection class of preclinical medical students. In this rare case report, diaphragmatic eventration along with various factors involved in its presentation would be considered holistically.

Keywords

• congenital
• gestation
• organogenesis