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Anatomy of the Groin

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Malignancies of the Groin

Abstract

Anatomically, the groin serves as the conduit for structures that are traversing between the abdominopelvic cavity and the lower extremity. It houses many delicate and vital neurovascular components that should be protected when surgically exploring this area. Such structures include the femoral vessels and their tributaries, as well as branches of the lumbar plexus. What makes the groin unique, however, are its anatomical spaces. Knowledge of the inguinal canal, the femoral triangle, the femoral sheath, and the femoral canal and their contents must preface any intention to surgically explore the groin. In this chapter, we provide an illustrative review of the anatomy of the groin, highlighting surgically important structures, spaces, and variations.

Illustrations for this chapter were done by Jessica Holland M.S., C.M.I.; Angelica Ortiz M.Sc., B.M.C.; Xochitl Vinaja M.S.; Charles Wesley Price M.S., C.M.I.

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Correspondence to Marios Loukas M.D., Ph.D. .

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Granger, A., Kollias, T., Loukas, M. (2018). Anatomy of the Groin. In: Delman, K., Master, V. (eds) Malignancies of the Groin. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60858-7_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60858-7_3

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