Doctorado en Investigaciones Cerebrales, Centro de Investigaciones Cerebrales, Universidad Veracruzana, Xalapa, Veracruz, México.
Doctorado en Ciencias Biológicas, Centro Tlaxcala de Biología de la Conducta, Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala, Tlaxcala, Tlaxcala, México.
Neurourol Urodyn. 2019 Mar;38(3):893-901. doi: 10.1002/nau.23934. Epub 2019 Feb 19.
To analyze, in female rats, the anatomical and histological features of the urethra and its relationship with the vagina and clitoris, and its innervation.
Seventeen adult female Wistar rats were used. Gross anatomy and acetylcholinesterase (AchE) histochemistry were performed to describe the urethral features, adjacent structures, and innervation. The histomorphometric characteristics of the urethra were determined in transversal, longitudinal, or coronal sections stained with Masson's Trichrome.
The female rat urethra is not a homogeneous tubular organ. The pre-pelvic and pelvic regions are firmly attached to the vagina with belt-like striated fibers forming a urethra-vaginal complex. The bulbar regions have curved segments and a narrow lumen. The clitoral region is characterized by a urethra-clitoral complex surrounded by a vascular plexus. The lumen area and thickness of the urethral layers significantly varied between regions (P < 0.05). Innervation of the urethra arrives from the major pelvic ganglion, the dorsal nerve of the clitoris (DNC), and the motor branch of the sacral plexus (MBSP).
Differential tissular composition of the urethra may underlie urinary continence and voiding dysfunction through different physiological mechanisms. The urethra-vagina complex seems to be the main site controlling urinary continence through active muscular mechanisms, while the bulbar urethra provides passive mechanisms and the urethra-clitoris complex seems to be crucial for distal urethral closure by means of a periurethral vascular network.
分析雌性大鼠尿道的解剖和组织学特征及其与阴道和阴蒂的关系及其神经支配。
使用 17 只成年雌性 Wistar 大鼠。进行大体解剖和乙酰胆碱酯酶（AchE）组织化学染色，以描述尿道的特征、相邻结构及其神经支配。用 Masson 三色染色对尿道进行横切、纵切或冠状切片，确定尿道的组织形态学特征。
雌性大鼠的尿道不是一个均质的管状器官。骨盆前区和骨盆区与阴道紧密相连，带有带状横纹肌纤维，形成尿道-阴道复合体。球区有弯曲的节段和狭窄的管腔。阴蒂区的特点是尿道-阴蒂复合体被血管丛包围。尿道各层的管腔面积和厚度在不同区域之间有显著差异（P < 0.05）。尿道的神经支配来自主要骨盆神经节、阴蒂背神经（DNC）和骶丛运动支（MBSP）。
尿道的组织学组成不同，可能通过不同的生理机制导致尿失禁和排尿功能障碍。尿道-阴道复合体似乎是通过主动肌肉机制控制尿失禁的主要部位，而球部尿道提供被动机制，尿道-阴蒂复合体通过尿道周围血管网络似乎对远端尿道闭合至关重要。
