Spleen anatomy
Also known as: splenic
Filters blood, recycles red cells and houses immune cells.
About
A soft, fist-sized organ in the upper left abdomen under the ribs.
Function. Filters the blood, removes worn-out red cells and mounts immune responses to blood-borne infection.
Clinical note. Ruptures in abdominal trauma; people without a spleen need vaccination against encapsulated bacteria.
Structures in the atlas 1
The modelled pieces that make up the spleen in the 3D atlas. Each opens in the explorer.
The lymphatic & immune in brief
Lymphatic vessels return tissue fluid to the blood and carry it through lymph nodes where immune cells inspect it. The spleen filters blood, recycles old red cells and mounts immune responses; the thymus, large in childhood, trains T lymphocytes. This release models the spleen and the two lobes of the thymus; lymph nodes and lymphatic vessels are not included.