Prostatic utricle | |
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Details | |
Precursor | remnant of paramesonephric duct |
Identifiers | |
Latin | utriculus prostaticus, utriculus masculinus, vagina masculina, sinus pocularis |
TA98 | A09.4.02.009 |
TA2 | 3449 |
FMA | 19702 |
Anatomical terminology |
The prostatic utricle (Latin for "small pouch of the prostate") is a small indentation in the prostatic urethra, at the apex of the urethral crest, on the seminal colliculus (verumontanum), laterally flanked by openings of the ejaculatory ducts. It is also known as the vagina masculina,[a] uterus masculinus or (in older literature) vesicula prostatica.[2]
It is often described as "blind", meaning that it is a duct that does not lead to any other structures.[3] It tends to be about one cm in length.[4] It can sometimes be enlarged.[5][6] The utricle is deemed enlarged if it allows insertion of a cystoscope at least 2 cm deep.[7] This is often associated with hypospadias.[8]
The prostatic utricle is the homologue of the female uterus (including the cervix) and vagina, usually described as derived from the paramesonephric duct,[9] although this is occasionally disputed.[10]
In 1905, Robert William Taylor described the function of the utricle: "In coitus it so contracts that it draws upon the openings of the ejaculatory ducts, and thus renders them so patulous that the semen readily passes through."[11]