Intermediate Descending Colon Quiz

Q1. Which artery is the principal direct arterial supply to the descending colon?

• Right colic artery
• Ileocolic artery
• Left colic artery
• Left gastric artery

Q2. Which branch of the left colic artery commonly participates in anastomosis near the left colic flexure?

• Appendicular artery
• Ascending branch of the left colic artery
• Right gastric artery
• Inferior rectal artery

Q3. Which arterial channel provides continuity along the mesenteric border of the descending colon?

• Marginal artery
• Portal vein
• Median sacral artery
• Inferior vena cava

Q4. Which organ is an important posterior relation of the upper descending colon?

• Urinary bladder
• Gallbladder
• Left kidney
• Right kidney

Q5. Which posterior abdominal wall muscle is related to the descending colon?

• Quadratus lumborum
• Pectoralis major
• Deltoid
• Masseter

Q6. Into which vein does much of the venous blood from the descending colon drain?

• Inferior mesenteric vein
• External iliac vein
• Azygos vein
• Internal thoracic vein

Q7. To which major nodal group does lymph from the descending colon ultimately pass through vessels associated with the inferior mesenteric artery?

• Superficial inguinal nodes
• Inferior mesenteric nodes
• Superior mediastinal nodes
• Axillary nodes

Q8. Which autonomic plexus is particularly associated with sympathetic pathways to the descending colon?

• Cardiac plexus
• Inferior mesenteric plexus
• Cervical plexus
• Brachial plexus

Q9. Which sympathetic nerves contribute importantly to prevertebral autonomic pathways supplying the hindgut?

• Pelvic splanchnic nerves
• Lumbar splanchnic nerves
• Phrenic nerves
• Greater occipital nerves

Q10. How do pelvic splanchnic parasympathetic fibers reach the hindgut?

• They become somatic motor fibers in the femoral nerve
• They ascend through autonomic plexuses toward terminal or intramural ganglia
• They travel through the vagus nerve
• They synapse in the inferior mesenteric sympathetic ganglion