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Structures opening in the vulval vestibule are the urethra (urinary meatus), vagina, Bartholin's glands, and Skene's glands. [1]The external urethral orifice is placed about 25–30 millimetres (1–1.2 in) [2] behind the clitoris and immediately in front of that of the vagina; it usually assumes the form of a short, sagittal cleft with slightly raised margins.
The glands may be the source of female ejaculation, [3] [4] [5] but this has not been proven. [4] Because they and the male prostate act similarly by secreting prostate-specific antigen (PSA), which is an ejaculate protein produced in males, and prostatic acid phosphatase, some authors refer to the Skene's glands as the "female prostate".
In the human female, the urethra is about 4 cm long, [10] [12] having 6 mm diameter, [12] and exits the body between the clitoris and the vaginal opening, extending from the internal to the external urethral orifice. The meatus is located below the clitoris.
A urogenital sinus anomaly is also a rare birth defect in women where the urethra and vagina both open into a common channel. [ 3 ] [ 4 ] A persistent cloaca is a disorder where the rectum , vagina , and urinary tract meet and fuse, creating a cloaca , a single common channel.
The urethra of an adult human female is 3-4 cm long. [4] The female urethra is located between the bladder neck to the external urethral orifice and is behind the symphysis pubis. [4] The urethral wall is composed of an inner epithelial lining, a sub-mucosa layer containing vascular supply, a thin fascial layer, and two layers of smooth muscle. [4]
The anatomy of the human urinary system differs between males and females at the level of the urinary bladder. In males, the urethra begins at the internal urethral orifice in the trigone of the bladder, continues through the external urethral orifice, and then becomes the prostatic, membranous, bulbar, and penile urethra.
The urethral crest is an anatomical feature present in the urinary system of both males and females. In males, the urethral crest is known as the crista urethralis masculinae , or the crista phallica , and is a longitudinal fold on the posterior wall of the urethra extending from the uvula of the bladder through the prostatic urethra . [ 1 ]
In human anatomy, and in mammals in general, the mons pubis or pubic mound (also known simply as the mons / m ɒ n z /, and known specifically in females as the mons Venus or mons veneris) [1] [2] is a rounded mass of fatty tissue found over the pubic symphysis of the pubic bones.