ANATOMY OF FEMORAL HERNIA. 



561 



crural sheath : Its length is about a third of an inch, and it reaches from 

 the base of Gimbernat's ligament to the upper part of the sapenous opening. 

 It decreases rapidly in size from above down, and is closed below. The 

 aperture by which the space communicates with the cavity of the abdomen 

 is named in the crural ring. 



Fig. 194. 



A. Fascia lata reflected. 



B. Crural sheath opened, 

 c. Poupart's ligament. 



D. Fascia late of the thigh in place. 

 + Two septa dividing the space of 

 the crural sheath into three com- 

 partments. 

 Vessels : 



a. Femoral artery. 



b. Femoral vein ; and 



c. A lymphatic gland, all in the 



crural sheath. 



d. Superficial circumflex iliac. 



e. Superficial pudic. 

 /. Saphenous vein. 



Nerves : 



1. Genito-crural. 



2. Ilio-inguinal. 



4. External cutaneous. 



DISSECTION OF THE CRURAL SHEATH (Illustrations of Dissections). 



Anterior to the canal, are Poupart's ligament and the upper end of the 

 falciform margin of the saphenous opening ; whilst behind it is the pecti- 

 neus muscle, covered by fascia lata. On the outer side of the canal, but 

 in the sheath, is the femoral vein. Through this channel the intestine passes 

 from the abdomen in femoral hernia. 



The crural ring 1 is the upper opening of the crural canal. It is on a 

 level with the base of Gimbernat's ligament (fig. 142, D ), and is larger in 

 the female than in the male. Oval in shape, its greatest measurement is 

 from side to side, in which direction it equals about half an inch ; and it 

 is filled by a lymphatic gland. 



The structures around the ring, outside the crural sheath, are similar to 

 those bounding the canal, viz., in front the superficial and the deep crural 

 arch, and behind, the pubes covered by the pectineus muscle and the fascia 

 lata. Internally is Gimbernat's ligament with the conjoined tendon ; and 

 externally (but within the sheath) is the femoral vein. The position of 

 vessels on the several sides of the ring is stated at page 429. 



Septum crurale. That part of the subperitoneal fatty layer which is 

 placed over the opening of the crural ring, has been named crural septum 

 from its position between the thigh and abdomen (Cloquet). The situa- 



1 Gimbernat used the name crural ring, and Mr. Lawrence proposes to call it 

 femoral aperture. Might not the nomenclature be made to resemble more that 

 used in describing inguinal hernia, by calling this opening the internal crural 

 aperture, and the saphenous opening the external crural aperture ? 

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