LaPlace's law

• LaPlace's law is useful in thinking about dilated tubular structures, such as the
bowel or vessels (e.g. aortic aneurysms). The relationship between wall
tension and radius shows why more dilated regions of a tube develop more
wall stress and therefore are at higher risk for perforation:
• Wall tension = intraluminal pressure × radius

• Which segment of the colon would develop the most wall tension in a low
rectal obstruction?
– Since the cecum has the largest diameter of all the colon segments, its wall will
develop the highest tension given a similar pressure throughout the colon. This is
shown in LaPlace's law: wall tension = intraluminal pressure × radius
• The law of LaPlace states: in a long pliable
tube, the site of largest diameter requires the
least pressure to distend. Hence, in a patient
suffering a distal large bowel obstruction, in the
setting of a competent ileocecal valve, the
cecum is the most common site of perforation.