Labia majora
| Labia majora | |
|---|---|
 Labia majora and pudendal cleft | |
| Details | |
| Precursor | Genital swelling |
| Artery | Deep external pudendal artery |
| Nerve | Perineal branches of posterior femoral cutaneous nerve |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | labium majus pudendi |
| Dorlands /Elsevier | Labia majora |
| TA | A09.2.01.003 |
| FMA | 20367 |
The labia majora (singular: labium majus) are two prominent longitudinal cutaneous folds that extend downward and backward from the mons pubis to the perineum. Together with the labia minora they form the labia of the vulva.
The labia majora is homologous to the male scrotum.
Embryology
Embryologically, they develop from labioscrotal folds.[1]
Anatomy
The labia majora constitute the lateral boundaries of the pudendal cleft, which contains the labia minora, interlabial sulci, clitoral hood, clitoral glans, frenulum clitoridis, the Hart's Line, and the vulval vestibule, which contains the external openings of the urethra and the vagina. Each labium majus has two surfaces, an outer, pigmented and covered with strong, pubic hair; and an inner, smooth and beset with large sebaceous follicles. The labia majora are covered with squamous epithelium. Between the two there is a considerable quantity of areolar tissue, fat, and a tissue resembling the dartos tunic of the scrotum, besides vessels, nerves, and glands. The labia majora are thicker in front, and form the anterior labial commissure where they meet below the mons pubis. Posteriorly, they are not really joined, but appear to become lost in the neighboring integument, ending close to, and nearly parallel to, each other. Together with the connecting skin between them, they form another commissure the posterior labial commissure which is also the posterior boundary of the pudendum. The interval between the posterior commissure and the anus, from 2.5 to 3 cm. in length, constitutes the perineum. The anterior region of the perineum is known as the urogenital triangle which separates it from the anal region. Between the labia majora and the inner thighs are the labiocrural folds. Between the labia majora and labia minora are the interlabial sulci. Labia majora atrophy after menopause.
Use in grafting
The fat pad of the labia majora can be used as a graft, often as a so-called "Martius labial fat pad graft", and can be used, for example, in urethrolysis.[2]
See also
References
- This article incorporates text in the public domain from the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)
External links
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