168 THE PELVIS AND THE GENITAL ORGANS. 



neck or cervix below, lying partly within the vagina. 

 The whole is held in place by ligaments. These in- 

 clude the broad ligaments, which extend from the sides of 

 the uterus to the lateral walls of the pelvis, and the 

 round ligaments, two muscular cords, about four inches 

 long, which pass out through the abdominal ring into 

 the inguinal canal and so to the mons veneris and labia, 

 thus corresponding to the spermatic cords in the male. 

 The cavity of the body of the uterus is small and 

 flattened and opens into the cervix by the internal os 

 uteri, the external os being at the opening of the cervix 

 into the vagina. There are three coats: a serous coat 

 derived from the peritoneum, a muscular coat of un- 

 striped fibers which forms the bulk of the whole organ, 

 and a mucous coat covered with ciliated epithelium. 



The uterus is always enlarged during menstruation 

 and is enormously enlarged in pregnancy. It receives 

 the fecundated ovum, retains and supports it during 

 the development of the fetus, and is the chief agent of 

 expulsion. In tubal or extra-uterine pregnancy the ovum 

 becomes attached in the tube instead of in the uterus, 

 and develops there, rupturing the tube and causing 

 serious hemorrhage. 



The passage from the cervix out of the body is the 

 vagina, a membranous canal, curved upward and back- 

 ward to conform to the axis of the pelvis, and attached 

 above to the cervix. Ordinarily the sides are in con- 

 tact. 



The arteries of the internal organs of generation are 

 the uterine from the internal iliac and the ovarian from 

 the aorta in the female, the pudic branches of the in- 

 ternal iliac and the spermatic from the aorta in the 

 male. The nerves are largely from the sympathetic 

 system. 



Abscess formation occurs frequently in the tubes and 

 gonorrheal infection may spread up the vagina and 

 through the uterus to the tubes, and even to the ab- 

 dominal cavity itself, The tubes may also be tubercular, 



