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Oesophagus histology

Microimage
Transverse section of the oesophagus. Image copyright: University of Oslo, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

The esophagus is a fibromuscular tube, about 25 cm (10 in) long in adults. The wall of the esophagus from the lumen outwards consists of mucosa, submucosa (connective tissue), layers of muscle fibers between layers of fibrous tissue, and an outer layer of connective tissue. The mucosa is a stratified squamous epithelium of around three layers of squamous cells, which contrasts to the single layer of columnar cells of the stomach.

Published August 31st 2020, updated October 18th 2021.