1.OESOPHAGUS:
The oesophagus is a fibromuscular tube, approximately 25cm in length, that transports food from the pharynx to the stomach. It originates at the inferior border of the cricoid cartilage, C6, extending to the cardiac orifice of the stomach.
It descends downward into the superior mediastinum of the thorax. Here, it is situated between the trachea and the vertebral bodies T1 to T4. It then enters the abdomen by piercing the muscular right crus of the diaphragm, through the oesophageal hiatus (simply, a hole in the diaphragm) at the T10 level.