Anatomy of the male reproductive organs of the pelvis

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Anatomy of the Male Reproductive Organs of the Pelvis

Figure 1. A. Anterolateral view of the male pelvis with left pelvic bone removed. B. Posterior view of the bladder and prostate showing a coronal section through the seminal vesicles and prostate.
Figure 2. A. Anterolateral view of the blood supply in the pelvis with left pelvic bone removed. B. Midsagittal view showing the venous drainage of the structures in the pelvis, and C. transverse section of the prostate.
Figure 3. A. Anterior view of a coronal section of the bladder and prostate. B. Superior view of transverse section through the prostate showing its anatomical lobes.
Figure 4. A. Midsagittal section of the pelvis and B. zones of the prostate gland.

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The male reproductive system consists of a number of external and internal organs. The male reproductive organs that lie within the pelvic cavity include the ductus deferens, seminal vesicles, ejaculatory ducts, and prostate.

These organs are all important in the transportation and protection of sperm cells as they move from the testis to eventually reach the penis.

Let’s start with the ductus deferens or the vas deferens, which are paired tubes that carry mature sperm from the epididymis to the ejaculatory ducts.

The ductus deferens begins at the inferior pole of the testis as a continuation of the last part of the epididymis, called the tail of the epididymis.

Then, it ascends posterior to the testis and medial to the epididymis to enter the spermatic cord, which is a cord-like structure that connects the testes to the abdominal cavity.

Finally, the ductus deferens penetrates the anterior abdominal wall through the inguinal canal and crosses the external iliac vessels to enter the pelvic cavity.

Here, the ductus deferens runs along the lateral wall of the pelvis, external to the parietal peritoneum.

At the posterolateral angle of the urinary bladder, the ductus deferens crosses the ureter, reaching the fundus of the bladder.

A way to remember the relationship between the ductus deferens and the ureter is the phrase, “Bridge over troubled water” where the ductus deferens is crossing over the ureter which is carrying urine to the bladder.

Sources

  1. "Imaging the Male Reproductive Tract: Current Trends and Future Directions" Radiologic Clinics of North America (2008)
  2. "On the autonomic innervation of the human vas deferens" Brain Research Bulletin (1982)
  3. "Anatomy and Physiology of Farm Animals" John Wiley & Sons (2013)
  4. "Andrology" Springer Science & Business Media (2010)
  5. "Wheater's Functional Histology" Churchill Livingstone (2013)
  6. "Applied Radiological Anatomy" Cambridge University Press (2012)
  7. "Grant's Dissector" Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (2012)
  8. "Clinical Anatomy" Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (2003)
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