GENITO-CRURAL NERVE. 



661 



It often bifurcates close to its origin from the plexus, in which case its two 

 branches perforate the psoas muscle in different places. 



(a) The genital branch (external spermatic, Schmidt), lies upon or near the external 

 iliac artery, and sends filaments along that vessel ; then perforating the transversalis 

 fascia, it passes through the inguinal canal with the spermatic cord, and is lost upon 



Fig. 437. VIEW FROM BEFORE OP TUE ANTERIOR BRANCHES OP THE LUMBAR AND SACRAL 

 NERVES WITH THE PLEXUSES (from Sappey, after Hirschfeld and Leveille). | 



1, lumbar cord of the great sympathetic nerve ; 2, 2', anterior primary divisiun of the 

 twelfth dorsal nerve ; 3, first lumbar ; 4, 4', ilio-inguinal branch of this nerve ; 5, 5', 

 ilio-hypogastric branch ; 6, second lumbar nerve ; 7, 7', genito-crural nerve rising from 

 the first and second lumbar ; 8, 8', external cutaneous nerve of the thigh ; 9, third 

 lumbar nerve; 10, fourth ; 11, fifth ; 12, lumbo-sacral trunk ; 13, iliac branch of the 

 ilio-inguinal; 1 4, its abdominal branch; 15, its genital branch; 16, external cutaneous 

 nerve of the right side passing out of the pelvis under Poupart's ligament ; 17, 17, 17, 

 cutaneous ramifications of this nerve ; 17', the same nerve exposed on the left side ; 18, 

 18', genital branch of the genito-crural ; 19, its crural branch on the right side becoming 

 cutaneous ; 19', the same on the left side exposed as it descends in front of the femoral 

 artery ; 20, anterior crural nerve ; 21, 21', obturator nerve ; 22, left sciatic plexus ; 23, 

 aortic plexus of the sympathetic nerve connected superiorly with the other pre-aorti'c 

 plexuses and the lumbar ganglia, and inferiorly with the hypogastric plexus. 



