Inguinal canal

The inguinal canal contains in male the spermatic cord and the ilioinguinal nerve (the inguinal canal is sometimes termed as spermatic canal in male), and in female, the round ligament of the uterus and the ilioinguinal nerve.

It is an oblique canal about 4 cm. long, slanting downward and medialward, and placed parallel with and a little above the inguinal ligament; it extends from the deep inguinal ring (abdominal inguinal ring) to the superficial inguinal ring (subcutaneous inguinal ring).

It is bounded, in front, by the integument and superficial fascia, by the aponeurosis of the Obliquus externus throughout its whole length, and by the Obliquus internus in its lateral third; behind, by the reflected inguinal ligament, the inguinal aponeurotic falx, the transversalis fascia, the extraperitoneal connective tissue and the peritoneum; above, by the arched fibers of Obliquus internus and Transversus abdominis; below, by the union of the transversalis fascia with the inguinal ligament, and at its medial end by the lacunar ligament.