FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS The ovary is an organ which in shape and size somewhat resembles a large almond, though its appearance varies in different individuals, and at different times of life. It lies in the side wall of the pelvis and is attached to the uterus by the ligament of the ovary, while its anterior border has a short reflection of peri toneum (mesovarium), running forward to the broad ligament of the uterus. It is through this anterior border that the vessels and nerves enter and leave the gland.
Under the microscope the ovary is seen to be covered by a layer of cubical cells, continuous near the anterior border with the cells of the peritoneum. Deep to these is the ovarian stroma and embedded in it are numerous nests of epithelial cells, the Graafian follicles, in various stages of development. During the childbearing period some of these will be nearing the ripe condi tion and then contain one large cell, the ovum, surrounded by a mass of small cells forming the discus proligerus. At one point this is continuous with a layer of cells (stratum granulosum) which lines the outer wall of the follicle, but elsewhere the two layers are separated by fluid, the liquor folliculi. When the f ol licle bursts, as it does in time, the ovum escapes on to the surface of the ovary. The substance of the ovary also contains cells which are believed to form the ovarian internal secretion.
The Fallopian tubes receive the ova and carry them to the uterus. That end of each which lies in front of the ovary has a number of fringes (fimbriae) hanging from it ; one of the largest of these is the ovarian fimbria and is attached to the upper or tubal pole of the ovary. The small opening among the fimbriae by which the tube communicates with the peritoneal cavity is the ostium abdominale, and from this the lumen of the tube runs from f our to f our and a half inches, until it opens into the cavity of the uterus by an extremely small opening. In fig. 2 the Fal lopian tube and ovary are pulled out from the uterus; this is not the position of the ovary in the living body, nor is it of the tube, the outer half of which lies folded on the front and inner sur face of the ovary. The Fallopian tubes are made chiefly of unstriped muscle, the outer layer of which is longitudinal and the inner circular ; deep to this are the submucous and mucous coats, the latter being lined with ciliated epithelium (q.v.) and thrown into longitudinal pleats. Superficially the tube is covered by peritoneum.
The uterus or womb is a pear-shaped, very thick-walled mus cular bag, lying in the pelvis between the bladder and rectum. In the non-pregnant condition it is about three inches long and two in its broadest part, which is above. The upper half or body is somewhat triangular with its base upward, and has an an terior surface which is moderately flat, and a posterior convex. The lower half is the neck or cervix and is cylindrical; it projects into the anterior wall of the vagina, into the cavity of which it opens by the os uteri externum. This opening in a uterus which has never been pregnant is a narrow transverse slit, rarely a circular aperture, but in those uteri in which pregnancy has oc curred the slit is much wider and its lips are thickened and gaping and often scarred. The interior of the body of the uterus shows a comparatively small triangular cavity (see figure 2), the anterior and posterior walls of which are in contact. The base of the triangle is upward, and at each lateral angle one of the Fallopian tubes opens. The apex leads into the canal of the cervix, but between the two there is a slight constriction known as the os uteri internum. The canal of the cervix is about an inch long, and is spindle-shaped when looked at from in front ; its anterior and posterior walls are in contact, and its lining mucous mem brane is raised into a pattern which, from its likeness to a cypress twig, is called the arbor vitae. This arrangement is obliterated after the first pregnancy. On making a mesial vertical section of the uterus the cavity is seen as a mere slit which is bent about its middle to form an angle the opening of which is f orward. A normal uterus is therefore bent forward on itself, or anteflexed. In addition to this, its long axis forms a marked angle with that of the vagina, so that the whole uterus is bent forward or ante verted. As a rule, in adults the uterus is more or less on one side of the mesial plane of the body. From each side of the uterus the peritoneum is reflected outward, as a two-layered sheet, to the side wall of the pelvis; this is the broad ligament, and between its layers lie several structures of importance. Above, there is the Fallopian tube, already described; below and in front is the round ligament ; behind, the ovary projects backward, and just above this, when the broad ligament is stretched out as in fig. 2, are the epoophoron and paroophoron with the duct of Gartner.