uterine tube
(noun)
either of the two ducts in female mammals through which ova pass from the ovaries to the uterus
Examples of uterine tube in the following topics:
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Female Duct System
- The Fallopian tubes, or oviducts, connect the ovaries to the uterus.
- The Fallopian tubes, also known as oviducts, uterine tubes, and salpinges (singular salpinx), are two very fine tubes lined with ciliated epithelia, leading from the ovaries of female mammals into the uterus via the uterotubal junction.
- The tubal ostium is the point at which the tubal canal meets the peritoneal cavity, while the uterine opening of the Fallopian tube is the entrance into the uterine cavity, the uterotubal junction.
- After about five days, the new embryo enters the uterine cavity and implants about a day later.
- Illustrative drawing of the anterior view of the uterus showing the uterine segments
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Sperm
- This energy is used for the journey through the female cervix, uterus, and uterine tubes.
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Anatomy of the Female Reproductive System
- The vagina is attached to the uterus through the cervix, while the uterus is attached to the ovaries via the fallopian tubes.
- At certain intervals, the ovaries release an ovum, which passes through the fallopian tube into the uterus.
- Approximately every month, a process of oogenesis matures one ovum to be sent down the fallopian tube attached to its ovary in anticipation of fertilization.
- An anatomically female's internal reproductive organs are the vagina, uterus, fallopian tubes, cervix, and ovary.
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Ovaries
- There are two extremities to the ovary, the tubal extremity and the uterine extremity.
- The tubal extremity is the end to which the Fallopian tube attaches via the infundibulopelvic ligament.
- The uterine extremity points downward and is attached to the uterus via the ovarian ligament.
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Fourth Week of Development
- The fourth week of gestation is characterized by the flexion of the superior portion of the neural tube to create the mesencephalon.
- Trophoblast cells surrounding the embryonic cells proliferate and invade deeper into the uterine lining.
- At the end of the fourth week the yolk sac presents the appearance of a small pear-shaped vesicle (the umbilical vesicle) opening into the digestive tube by a long narrow tube, the vitelline duct.
- The chorionic villi, which invade and destroy the uterine decidua and at the same time absorb from it nutritive materials for the growth of the embryo.
- Late in the fourth week of gestation, the superior part of the neural tube flexes at the level of the future midbrain, the mesencephalon.
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Ectopic Pregnancy
- An ectopic pregnancy is implantation and development of the embryo outside the uterus, typically in the fallopian tubes.
- An ectopic pregnancy, or eccysis, is a complication of pregnancy in which the embryo implants outside the uterine cavity.
- In a normal pregnancy, the fertilized egg enters the uterus and settles into the uterine lining where it has plenty of room to divide and grow.
- In a typical ectopic pregnancy, the embryo adheres to the lining of the fallopian tube and burrows into the tubal lining.
- There is no inflammation of the tube in ectopic pregnancy.
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Hysterectomy
- Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus, and may also include removal of the Fallopian tubes, ovaries, and cervix.
- Removal of the uterus renders the patient unable to bear children (as does removal of ovaries and fallopian tubes) and has surgical risks as well as long-term effects, so the surgery is normally recommended when other treatment options are not available.
- Because of this, hysterectomy is normally recommended as a last resort to remedy certain intractable uterine/reproductive system conditions.
- Certain types of reproductive system cancers (uterine, cervical, ovarian, endometrium) or tumors, including uterine fibroids that do not respond to more conservative treatment options.
- Severe and intractable endometriosis (growth of the uterine lining outside the uterine cavity) and/or adenomyosis (a form of endometriosis, where the uterine lining has grown into and sometimes through the uterine wall musculature), after pharmaceutical or other surgical options have been exhausted.
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Endometriosis
- Endometriosis is a condition where the cells of the endometrium leak out and grow outside of the uterine cavity.
- Endometriosis is a gynecological medical condition in which cells from the lining of the uterus (endometrium) leak out and flourish outside the uterine cavity, most commonly on the ovaries.
- The uterine cavity is lined by endometrial cells, which are influenced by female hormones.
- The fallopian tubes, ovaries, uterus, bowels, and bladder can be bound together in ways that are painful on a daily basis, not just during menstrual periods.
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Surgical Sterilization
- Tubal ligation (females): Known popularly as "having one's tubes tied. " The Fallopian tubes (also referred to as oviducts), which allow the sperm to fertilize the ovum and would carry the fertilized ovum to the uterus, are closed.
- This generally involves a general anesthetic and a laparotomy or laparoscopic approach to cut, clip, or cauterize the fallopian tubes.
- Vasectomy (male): The vasa deferentia, the tubes which connect the testicles to the prostate, are cut and closed .
- Hysterectomy (females): The uterus, and often the ovaries, is surgically removed, permanently preventing pregnancy and treating and preventing some diseases, such as uterine cancer.
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Fertilization
- The sperm and the egg cell (which has been released from one of the female's two ovaries) unite in one of the two fallopian tubes.
- The sperm and ovum unite through fertilization, creating a zygote that (over the course of 8–9 days) will implant in the uterine wall, where it will reside over the course of 9 months.