• 15 parts
  • Checked October 2026

Abdomen Cross Section Diagram

The abdomen cut across at the first lumbar vertebra and read the way a scan is read.

Abdomen Cross Section Diagram

Name Date

Tap any part to read, rename or leave it out

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
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Write the name of each numbered part.Answer key

  1. Liver
  2. Stomach
  3. Kidneys
  4. Spleen
  5. Pancreas
  6. Vertebra
  7. Spinal cord
  8. Abdominal aorta
  9. Inferior vena cava
  10. Rib
  11. Rectus abdominis
  12. Psoas major
  13. Erector spinae
  14. Parietal peritoneum
  15. Peritoneal cavity

Drawn for this site on 2026-10-01 from plain geometry. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a part is answered.

Next step Next: the same organs from the front

All 15 parts on the diagram

Show the list

Organs 6

  1. Liver The largest organ in the slice, on the body's right.
  2. Stomach A hollow organ at the front, on the body's left.
  3. Kidneys One on each side of the spine, behind the peritoneum.
  4. Spleen Far back on the body's left, beside the stomach.
  5. Pancreas It lies across the back wall, behind the stomach.
  6. Peritoneal cavity The space inside the peritoneum, drawn wide open here.

Vessels, spine and wall 9

  1. Vertebra A lumbar vertebra: the round body faces the front.
  2. Spinal cord It runs in the canal behind the body of the vertebra.
  3. Abdominal aorta The great artery, in front of the spine, left of the midline.
  4. Inferior vena cava The great vein, just to the right of the aorta.
  5. Rib The lower ribs, cut across, in the wall at the sides.
  6. Rectus abdominis A pair of long muscles down the front of the abdomen.
  7. Psoas major A muscle beside the lumbar vertebrae, on each side.
  8. Erector spinae The back muscles on either side of the spine.
  9. Parietal peritoneum The lining of the wall, round the peritoneal cavity.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-10-01 in both of these, and where each part lies read in them. (1) Gray, Anatomy of the Human Body, 20th edition, 1918 (public domain): The Abdomen, https://www.bartleby.com/107/246.html (the cavity bounded in front and at the sides by the abdominal muscles and behind by the vertebral column and the Psoas and Quadratus lumborum; the parietal and visceral peritoneum and the peritoneal cavity) and The Pancreas, https://www.bartleby.com/107/251.html (the pancreas lying across the back wall, and the figure of a transverse section through the first lumbar vertebra). (2) Wikipedia, text only: Transpyloric plane, Abdomen, Retroperitoneal space, Peritoneal cavity, Pancreas, Kidney, Spleen, Abdominal aorta, Inferior vena cava, Psoas major muscle, Erector spinae muscles, Rectus abdominis muscle and Conus medullaris, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transpyloric_plane and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retroperitoneal_space : the plane at the first lumbar vertebra cutting the pylorus of the stomach, with the kidneys and pancreas at this level; the kidneys in the retroperitoneal space; the pancreas behind the stomach with its tail next to the spleen; the vena cava just to the right of the aorta; the spinal cord ending near the first and second lumbar vertebrae. No OpenStax page was read. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-10-01 from plain geometry; nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

This abdomen cross section diagram shows one slice of the body near the first lumbar vertebra, so you can label the abdominal organs in a transverse section.

Read the full guide

How to read the slice

The slice is seen from below, as a scan is read. The front of the body is at the top. The body's right side is on the left of the drawing, so the liver is on the left and the stomach and spleen are on the right.

Front, then back

The liver, stomach and spleen lie inside the peritoneal cavity. The pancreas, the kidneys, the aorta and the inferior vena cava lie behind the peritoneum, against the back wall. The vertebra stands in the middle of the back, with the psoas beside it and the erector spinae behind.

  • The cavity is drawn wide open so you can tap it; in life the organs fill it.
  • Find the spine first: everything near it lies behind the peritoneum.

Questions and answers

Which organs are in a cross section of the abdomen at L1?

Near the first lumbar vertebra a slice meets the liver, the stomach near its pylorus, the spleen, the pancreas and both kidneys, with the aorta and inferior vena cava in front of the spine. The exact level differs a little between people.

Why is the liver on the left in a transverse section?

A transverse section is shown as if you stood at the feet and looked toward the head. The body's right side then falls on the left of the picture, and the liver lies on the body's right.

How do I label the abdominal organs in a transverse section?

Find the vertebra at the back, then the aorta and vena cava in front of it and a kidney on each side. The big organ at the front on the picture's left is the liver. This drawing is our own, not a course figure.

Which organs here are behind the peritoneum?

The pancreas, the kidneys, the abdominal aorta and the inferior vena cava. They are called retroperitoneal.

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