Female urethra
Updates to Article Attributes
Body
was changed:
The female urethra is a simple tube that extends from the internal urethral orifice of the bladder to the external urethral orifice in the vestibule of the vagina. It has a much simpler course, structure and less lose prone to disease than the male urethra.
Gross anatomy
The female urethra measures approximately 4cm in length. It is embedded in the anterior vaginal wall and runs with the vagina through the urogenital hiatus.
The female urethra begins at the internal urethral meatus at the bladder neck and opens in the vestibule of the vagina, 2.5cm below the clitoris. Paraurethral glands line the urethra at the external urethral meatus.
Relations
- anteriorly - pubic symphysis
- posteriorly - vagina
- laterally - puborectalis muscle
Blood supply
- arterial supply - internal pudendal and vaginal arteries
- venous drainage - similarly named veins
Lymphatic supply
- internal iliac nodes
Nerve supply
Variant anatomy
Radiographic appearance
Fluoroscopy
- micturating cystourethrogram (MCU) - will reveal a "spinning-top" appearance with normal 'wavy' walls caused by the pelvic floor muscles
- retrograde urethrogram - proves troublesome because the balloon will almost completely fill the urethra but special equipment can be used
US
- transvaginal, transperineal or transurethral approach can all be used
- imaged as as tubular structure anterior to the vagina, coursing between the bladder and the vestibule of the vagina 5
CT
- the urethra can be assessed in axial plane to assess for diverticula, stones and tumour but MRI is considered the best modality 4-5
MRI
The use of an endovaginal coil has been shown to significantly improve SNR and image quality. On T1C+ or T2 axial images the female urethra appears "target-like" with four layers 3:
- lower signal outer ring
- higher intensity outer zone
- low signal inner ring
- high signal inner zone
Related pathology
-<p>The <strong>female urethra</strong> is a simple tube that extends from the internal urethral orifice of the <a href="/articles/bladder" title="bladder">bladder</a> to the external urethral orifice in the vestibule of the vagina. It has a much simpler course, structure and less lose prone to disease than the <a href="/articles/male-urethra" title="Male urethra">male urethra</a>. </p><h4>Gross anatomy</h4><p>The female <a href="/articles/urethra" title="urethra">urethra</a> measures approximately 4cm in length. It is embedded in the anterior vaginal wall and runs with the <a href="/articles/vagina" title="Vagina">vagina</a> through the urogenital hiatus. </p><p>The female urethra begins at the internal urethral meatus at the bladder neck and opens in the vestibule of the vagina, 2.5cm below the clitoris. Paraurethral glands line the urethra at the external urethral meatus. </p><h5>Relations</h5><ul>-<li>anteriorly - <a href="/articles/pubic-symphysis" title="pubic symphysis">pubic symphysis</a>-</li>-<li>posteriorly - <a href="/articles/vagina" title="Vagina">vagina</a>-</li>-<li>laterally - <a href="/articles/puborectalis-muscle" title="puborectalis muscle">puborectalis muscle</a>-</li>- +<p>The <strong>female urethra</strong> is a simple tube that extends from the internal urethral orifice of the <a href="/articles/bladder">bladder</a> to the external urethral orifice in the vestibule of the vagina. It has a much simpler course, structure and less lose prone to disease than the <a href="/articles/male-urethra">male urethra</a>. </p><h4>Gross anatomy</h4><p>The female <a href="/articles/urethra">urethra</a> measures approximately 4cm in length. It is embedded in the anterior vaginal wall and runs with the <a href="/articles/vagina">vagina</a> through the urogenital hiatus. </p><p>The female urethra begins at the internal urethral meatus at the bladder neck and opens in the vestibule of the vagina, 2.5cm below the clitoris. Paraurethral glands line the urethra at the external urethral meatus. </p><h5>Relations</h5><ul>
- +<li>anteriorly - <a href="/articles/pubic-symphysis">pubic symphysis</a>
- +</li>
- +<li>posteriorly - <a href="/articles/vagina">vagina</a>
- +</li>
- +<li>laterally - <a href="/articles/puborectalis-muscle">puborectalis muscle</a>
- +</li>
-<li>arterial supply - <a href="/articles/internal-pudendal-artery" title="internal pudendal artery">internal pudendal</a> and <a href="/articles/vaginal-artery" title="vaginal artery">vaginal</a> arteries</li>-<li>venous drainage - similarly named veins</li>-</ul><h4>Lymphatic supply</h4><ul><li>internal iliac nodes</li></ul><h4>Nerve supply</h4><ul><li><a href="/articles/pudendal-nerve" title="pudendal nerve">pudendal nerve</a></li></ul><h4>Variant anatomy</h4><ul><li><a href="/articles/urethral-agenesis" title="Urethral agenesis">urethral agenesis</a></li></ul><h4>Radiographic appearance</h4><h5>Fluoroscopy</h5><ul>-<li>-<strong>micturating cystourethrogram (MCU)</strong> - will reveal a "spinning-top" appearance with normal 'wavy' walls caused by the pelvic floor muscles</li>-<li>-<strong>retrograde urethrogram</strong> - proves troublesome because the balloon will almost completely fill the urethra but special equipment can be used</li>- +<li>arterial supply - <a href="/articles/internal-pudendal-artery">internal pudendal</a> and <a href="/articles/vaginal-artery">vaginal</a> arteries</li>
- +<li>venous drainage - similarly named veins</li>
- +</ul><h4>Lymphatic supply</h4><ul><li>internal iliac nodes</li></ul><h4>Nerve supply</h4><ul><li><a title="Pudendal nerve" href="/articles/pudendal-nerve-1">pudendal nerve</a></li></ul><h4>Variant anatomy</h4><ul><li><a href="/articles/urethral-agenesis">urethral agenesis</a></li></ul><h4>Radiographic appearance</h4><h5>Fluoroscopy</h5><ul>
- +<li>
- +<strong>micturating cystourethrogram (MCU)</strong> - will reveal a "spinning-top" appearance with normal 'wavy' walls caused by the pelvic floor muscles</li>
- +<li>
- +<strong>retrograde urethrogram</strong> - proves troublesome because the balloon will almost completely fill the urethra but special equipment can be used</li>
-<li>transvaginal, transperineal or transurethral approach can all be used</li>-<li>imaged as as tubular structure anterior to the vagina, coursing between the bladder and the vestibule of the vagina <sup>5</sup> </li>- +<li>transvaginal, transperineal or transurethral approach can all be used</li>
- +<li>imaged as as tubular structure anterior to the vagina, coursing between the bladder and the vestibule of the vagina <sup>5</sup> </li>
-<li>lower signal outer ring</li>-<li>higher intensity outer zone</li>-<li>low signal inner ring</li>-<li>high signal inner zone</li>- +<li>lower signal outer ring</li>
- +<li>higher intensity outer zone</li>
- +<li>low signal inner ring</li>
- +<li>high signal inner zone</li>
-<li>-<a href="/articles/urethral-diverticulum" title="Urethral diverticulum">urethral diverticulum</a><ul><li><a href="/articles/female-prostate-sign" title="Female prostate sign">female prostate sign</a></li></ul>-</li>-<li><a href="/articles/adenocarcinoma-of-urethral-diverticulum" title="Urethral diverticulum adenocarcinoma">urethral diverticulum adenocarcinoma</a></li>-<li><a href="/articles/urethral-stricture" title="Urethral stricture">urethral stricture</a></li>- +<li>
- +<a href="/articles/urethral-diverticulum">urethral diverticulum</a><ul><li><a href="/articles/female-prostate-sign">female prostate sign</a></li></ul>
- +</li>
- +<li><a href="/articles/adenocarcinoma-of-urethral-diverticulum">urethral diverticulum adenocarcinoma</a></li>
- +<li><a href="/articles/urethral-stricture">urethral stricture</a></li>
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