In a female with an indirect inguinal hernia, the herniated mass lies along side of which structure as it traverses the inguinal canal?
In females, the round ligament of the uterus is the main structure traversing the inguinal canal. In males, the most impoant structure in the inguinal canal is the spermatic cord. The iliohypogastric nerve innervates the abdominal wall. It runs between the transversus abdominis and internal oblique muscles, then pierces the internal oblique at the anterior superior iliac spine to run between the internal and external obliques. The ovarian aery and vein are branches from the descending aoa and inferior vena cava which supply the ovary in the pelvis. The pectineal ligament is a thick layer of fascia over the pectineal line of the pubis. Although the pectineal ligament helps define the boundaries of the inguinal canal, you can't really say that the pectineal ligament traverses the canal. That's why the round ligament is the best answer. Ref: DeUgae C.M. (2013). Chapter 2. Embryology of the Urogenital System & Congenital Anomalies of the Genital Tract. In A.H. DeCherney, L. Nathan, N. Laufer, A.S. Roman (Eds), CURRENT Diagnosis & Treatment: Obstetrics & Gynecology, 11e
Iliohypogastric nerve
Ovarian aery and vein
Pectineal ligament
Round ligament of the uterus