Self-Assessment Questions

9. Gross anatomy of the female reproductive tract

• What is the embryologic origin of the round ligament, and what other structure has similar embryologic origins in the female?

  Show Answer

  Correct answer:
  The round ligaments attach from the cornua of the uterus anterior to the attachment of the fallopian tubes and travel through the pelvis to the side wall and eventually enter the inguinal rings bilaterally. The embryologic origin of the round ligament is the gubernaculum, a fibrous band of tissue that, in the female, will eventually help to stabilize the upper uterus in the abdominal cavity. The ovarian ligaments are also derived from the gubernaculum (see Chapter 6).