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The uterus or womb is the major female reproductive organ of most mammals, including humans. One end called the cervix, opens into the vagina, and the wider end, called the body of uterus, is connected on both sides with the Fallopian tubes. It comes in a variety of shapes and sizes in different organisms. In humans it is pear-shaped. Some organisms such as rabbits, pigs, goats, and horses have bipartite or "horned" uteri. 1 Anatomy
The uterus is located in the pelvis immediately dorsal (and usually somewhat rostral) to the urinary bladder and ventral to the rectumThe 'Rectum' is the final portion of the large intestine in some mammals, and the gut in others, terminating in the anus. Medical procedures For the diagnosis of certain ailments, a rectal exam may be done. Suppositories may be inserted into the rectum as. It is held in place by several ligamentA ligament is a short band of tough fibrous connective tissue composed mainly of long, stringy collagen molecules. Ligaments connect bones to other bones in joints. They do not connect muscles to bones; that is the function of tendons. Anatomy.s. Outside of pregnancyPregnancy is the process by which a mammalian female carries a live offspring from conception until it develops to the point where the offspring is capable of living outside the womb. It starts with conception, the process of fertilization to form a zygot, its size is several centimeterscm redirects here, alternate uses: cm (disambiguation A centimetre (symbol cm American spelling: centimeter is an SI unit of length. One centimetre is: one-hundredth of one metre one-tenth of a decimetre ten millimetres. millimetre << centimetre << decime in
diameter.
The uterus mostly consists of muscleskeletal muscle Muscle is one of the four tissue types. The other three types are: epithelium, connective tissue and nervous tissue. The primary purpose of muscle tissue is to contract. Muscle contraction is used to move parts of the body, as well as to m. The innermost permanent layer of tissue is called the endometriumThe endometrium is the uterine membrane in mammals which is thickened in preparation for fertilization, and into which a fertilized egg is implanted upon its arrival into the uterus. It is rich in blood vessels, which are soon connected to by the new embr. In most mammals, including humans, the endometrium builds a lining periodically which, if no pregnancy occurs, is shed or reabsorbed. Shedding of the endometrial lining in humans is responsible for menstrual bleeding (known colloquially as a woman's "period") throughout the fertile years of a female. In other mammals there may be cycles set as widely apart as six months or as frequently as a few days.
2 Function
The main function of the uterus is to accept a fertilized ovum which becomes implanted into the endometrium, and derives nourishment from blood vessels which develop exclusively for this purpose. The fertilized ovum becomes an embryo, develops into a fetus and gestates until childbirth. Due to anatomical barriers such as the pelvis, the uterus is pushed partially into the abdomen due to its expansion during pregnancy. Even in pregnancy the mass of a human uterus amounts to only about a kilogram (2.2 pounds).
3 Pathology
Some pathological states include:
