Inguinal canal

Inguinal canal
Front of abdomen, showing surface markings for arteries and inguinal canal. (Inguinal canal is tube at lower left.)
The scrotum. On the left side the cavity of the tunica vaginalis has been opened; on the right side only the layers superficial to the Cremaster have been removed. (Right inguinal canal visible at upper left.)
Details
Identifiers
Latin	canalis inguinalis
MeSH	A01.047.412
TA	A04.5.01.026
FMA	19928
Anatomical terminology []

The inguinal canals are the two passages in the anterior abdominal wall which in men convey the spermatic cords and in women the round ligament of uterus. The inguinal canals are larger and more prominent in men. There is one inguinal canal on each side of the midline.

The inguinal canals are situated just above the medial half of the inguinal ligament. In both sexes the canals transmit the ilioinguinal nerves. The canals are approximately 3.75 to 4 cm long., angled anteroinferiorly and medially.

A first-order approximation is to visualize each canal as a cylinder.

To help define the boundaries, these canals are often further approximated as boxes with six sides. Not including the two rings, the remaining four sides are usually called the "anterior wall", "inferior wall", "superior wall ("roof")", and "posterior wall ("floor")". These consist of the following:

During development each gonad (ovary or testicle) descend from their starting point on the posterior abdominal wall (para-aortically) from the labioscrotal swellings near the kidneys, down the abdomen, and through the inguinal canals to reach the scrotum. Each testicle then descends through the abdominal wall into the scrotum, behind the processus vaginalis (which later obliterates). Thus lymphatic spread from a testicular tumour is to the para-aortic nodes first, and not the inguinal nodes.

The structures which pass through the canals differ between males and females:

The classic description of the contents of the spermatic cords in the male are:

3 arteries: artery to vas deferens (or ductus deferens), testicular artery, cremasteric artery;