820 FEMALE ORGANS OF GENERATION. 



of the Graafian vesicle, and does not surround it, as is the case in the true 

 corpora lutea. 



In the foetus, the ovaries are situated, like the testes, in the lumbar region, 

 near the kidneys. They may be distinguished from those bodies at an earlv 

 period by their elongated and flattened form, and by their position, which is at 

 first oblique, and then nearly transverse. They gradually descend into the 

 pelvis. 



The Ligament of the Ovary is a rounded cord, which extends from each supe- 

 rior angle of the uterus to the inner extremity of the ovary; it consists of 

 fibrous tissue, and a few muscular fibres derived from the uterus. 



The Round Ligaments are two rounded cords, between four and five inches 

 in length, situated between the layers of the broad ligament in front of and 

 below the Fallopian tube. Commencing on each side at the superior angle of 

 the uterus, this ligament passes forwards and outwards through the internal 

 abdominal ring, along the inguinal canal to the labia majora, in which it be- 

 comes lost. The round ligament consists of areolar tissue, vessels, and nerves, 

 besides a dense bundle of fibrous tissue, and muscular fibres prolonged from 

 the uterus, inclosed in a duplicature of peritoneum, which, in the foetus, is 

 prolonged in the form of a tubular process for a short distance into the inguinal 

 canal. This process is called the canal of Nuck. It is generally obliterated in 

 the adult, but sometimes remains pervious even in advanced life. It is analo- 

 gous to the peritoneal pouch which accompanies the descent of the testis. 



Vessels and Nerves. The arteries of the ovaries and Fallopian tubes are the 

 ovarian from the aorta. They anastomose with the termination of the uterine 

 arteries, and enter the attached border of the ovary. The veins follow the 

 course of the arteries; they form a plexus near the ovary, the pampiniform 

 plexus. The nerves are derived from the spermatic plexus, the Fallopian tube 

 receiving a branch from one of the uterine nerves. 



MAMMARY GLANDS. 



The Mammse, or Breasts, are accessory glands of the generative system, 

 which secrete the milk. They exist in the male as well as in the female; but 

 in the former only in a rudimentary state, unless their growth is excited by 

 peculiar circumstances. In the female, they are two large hemispherical emi- 

 nences situated towards the lateral aspect of the pectoral region, corresponding 

 to the interval between the third and sixth or seventh ribs, and extending from 

 the side of the sternum to the axilla. Their weight and dimensions differ at 

 different periods of life, and in different individuals. Before puberty they are 

 of small size, but enlarge as the generative organs become more completely 

 developed. They increase during pregnancy, and especially after delivery, and 

 become atrophied in old age. The left mamma is generally a little larger than 

 the right. Their base is nearly circular, flattened or slightly concave, and 

 having their long diameter directed upwards and outwards towards the axilla; 

 they are separated from the Pectoral muscles by a thin layer of superficial 

 fascia. The outer surface of the mamma is convex, and presents, just below the 

 centre, a small conical prominence, the nipple (mammilla). The surface of the 

 nipple is dark-colored, and surrounded by an areola having a colored tint. In 

 the virgin, the areola is of a delicate rosy hue; about the second month of im- 

 pregnation, it enlarges, and acquires a darker tinge, which increases as preg- 

 nancy advances, becoming, in some cases, a dark brown or even black color. 

 This color diminishes as soon as lactation is over, but is never entirely lost 

 through life. These changes in the color of the areola are of extreme import- 

 ance in forming a conclusion in a case of suspected pregnancy. 



The nipple is a cylindrical or conical eminence, capable of undergoing a sort 

 of erection from mechanical excitement. It is of a pink or brownish hue, its 

 surface wrinkled and provided with papillae, and its summit perforated by 



