serous pericardium


pericardium

 [per″ĭ-kahr´de-um] the fibroserous sac enclosing the heart and the roots of the great vessels, composed of external (fibrous) and internal (serous) layers.adherent pericardium one abnormally connected with the heart by dense fibrous tissue.fibrous pericardium the external layer of the pericardium, consisting of dense fibrous tissue.parietal pericardium the parietal layer of the serous pericardium, which is in contact with the fibrous pericardium.serous pericardium the inner, serous portion of pericardium, consisting of two layers, visceral and parietal; the space between the layers is the cavity" >pericardial cavity.visceral pericardium the inner layer of the serous pericardium, which is in contact with the heart and roots of the great vessels. Called also epicardium.

per·i·car·di·um

, pl.

per·i·car·di·a

(per'i-kar'dē-ŭm, -ă), [TA] The fibroserous membrane, consisting of mesothelium and submesothelial connective tissue, covering the heart and beginning of the great vessels. It is a closed sac having two layers: the visceral layer (epicardium), immediately surrounding and applied to all the heart's surfaces, and the outer parietal layer, forming the sac, composed of strong fibrous tissue (fibrous pericardium [TA]) lined with a serous membrane (serous pericardium [TA]). The phrenic nerves pass to the diaphragm through the anterior pericardium and divide the pericardium into antephrenic and retrophrenic portions; the pulmonary hilum divides both of these portions into suprahilar, hilar, and infrahilar portions. Synonym(s): capsula cordis, heart sac, membrana cordis, theca cordis [L. fr. G. pericardion, the membrane around the heart]

serous pericardium

A flattened sac formed of a single layer of cells and connective tissue. See also: pericardium