| Femoral canal | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Femoral sheath laid open to show its three compartments. (Femoral canal visible but not labeled.) | |
 |
|
| Structures passing behind the inguinal ligament. (Femoral canal visible but not labeled.) | |
| Latin | canalis femoralis |
| Gray's | subject #157 625 |
 |
This article only describes one highly specialized aspect of its associated subject. Please help improve this article by adding more general information. (October 2009) |
The femoral sheath has three compartments. The lateral compartment contains the femoral artery, the intermediate compartment contains the femoral vein, and the medial and smallest compartment is called the femoral canal. The femoral canal contains efferent lymphatic vessels and a lymph node embedded in a small amount of areolar tissue. It is conical in shape and is about 2 cm long.
The femoral canal is bordered:
- Anteriorly by the inguinal ligament
- Posteriorly by the pectineal ligament
- Medially by the lacunar ligament
- Laterally by the femoral vein
It contains the lymph nodes of Cloquet or Rosenmuller. It should not be confused with the nearby adductor canal.
Contents |
Clinical significance
The entrance to the femoral canal is the femoral ring, through which bowel can sometimes enter, causing a femoral hernia.
Physiological significance
The position of the femoral canal medially to the femoral vein is of physiologic importance. The space of the canal allows for the expansion of the femoral vein when venous return from the lower limbs is increased or when increased intrabodominal pressure (valsalva maneuver) causes a temporary stasis in the venous flow.
See also
External links
- antthigh at The Anatomy Lesson by Wesley Norman (Georgetown University) (femoralsheath)
- Diagram at NHS
- http://www.med.mun.ca/anatomyts/digest/abwall.htm
This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained within it may be outdated.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
This anatomy article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
