MECKEL'S diverticulum is the commonest developmental anomaly of the intestinal tract. My experience with this condition is based on 8 cases in which the condition was diagnosed or verified at operation in my private practice and 2 cases observed while I was a graduate student. Before discussing the more interesting cases in some detail it would be fitting to review the surgical pathology of this anomaly.
The diverticulum is a persistent remnant of the vitelline duct or yolk stalk.1 In early embyronic life it passed from the yolk sac along the umbilical cord to that portion of the midgut which later becomes the ileum. In normal circumstances the vitelline duct is obliterated at the end of the sixth or seventh week of embryonic life, but it may persist to a greater or lesser extent and be responsible for many symptoms and complications both in infantile and in adult life.