cardia
(KAR-dee-uh)
The part of the stomach that is closest to the esophagus. Food and liquids pass through the cardia to enter the stomach from the esophagus. A valve near the cardia helps keep stomach contents from backing up into the esophagus.
The NIH Clinical Center (the research hospital of NIH) is open. For more details about its operating status, please visit cc.nih.gov.
Updates regarding government operating status and resumption of normal operations can be found at opm.gov.