Roux limb

A Roux limb may be formed in multiple different gastrointestinal surgeries, including

• bariatric surgery, e.g.
  • Roux-en-Y gastric bypass
  • biliopancreatic diversion
• partial gastrectomy
• total gastrectomy
• partial pancreaticoduodenectomy (Whipple procedure)

In these procedures, the small bowel is divided at some point. This leaves two components of small bowel:

• a proximal component connected to the stomach, pancreas, and biliary system
• a distal component connected to the terminal ileum and colon

The end of the distal component is dragged up and connected (anastomosed) to the remnant stomach (or esophagus in the case of total gastrectomy). This is the Roux limb. It accepts incoming food and transmits it from the gastric remnant to the colon. It is sometimes referred to as the "feeding" or "alimentary" limb (to differentiate it from the "biliopancreatic limb"). The term "efferent" limb is also sometimes used, but this term may be more appropriate in the setting of a Billroth II gastrojejunostomy configuration.

History and etymology

The Roux limb is named after a Swiss surgeon César Roux (1857-1934), who was Chief of Surgery at the county hospital of Lausanne and following the opening of the new University of Lausanne, in 1890, was its inaugural Professor of External Pathology and Gynecology .