What is the broad ligament of the uterus

The broad ligament of the uterus is a type of uterine ligament. I believe many friends don’t know much about the broad ligament of the uterus. So what is the broad ligament of the uterus? Next, this article will introduce you to the relevant knowledge about the broad ligament of the uterus. Friends who want to know what the broad ligament of the uterus is can continue reading! Please see the detailed introduction below.

The broad ligaments of the uterus are double-layer peritoneal folds on both sides of the uterus, extending from the peritoneum on the front and back of the uterus to the side walls of the pelvis. Its upper edge is free and contains the fallopian tube. The lower and lateral edges are connected to the pelvic wall and transition to the peritoneum of the pelvic wall. The front layer of the broad ligament covers the round ligament of the uterus, and the back layer covers the ovary. There are blood vessels, lymphatic vessels, nerves and connective tissue between the two layers. The broad ligaments of the uterus limit the displacement of the uterus to the sides.

Wing-shaped peritoneal folds on both sides of the uterus. It starts from the serosa on the side of the uterus and ends at the pelvic walls on both sides; the upper edge is free and the lower end is connected to the pelvic floor peritoneum. It is composed of two lobes of peritoneum, the anterior and posterior, and the connective tissue between them, which are loose and easy to separate. The peritoneum at the upper edge of the ligament extends upward, and the inner 2/3 wraps around part of the fallopian tube to form the ureteral mesentery; the outer 1/3 wraps around the ovarian blood vessels to form the pelvic infundibulum ligament, also known as the ovarian suspensory ligament.

The broad ligament of the uterus can also develop tumors. Solid tumors in the broad ligament of the uterus are rare, and their incidence rate accounts for about 1% of uterine fibroids. 5%～2. 0%, more common in adult women, most of whom have no obvious symptoms, but may have lower abdominal pain or menstrual changes, and are often discovered accidentally during physical examination or surgery.

Broad ligament fibroids

Clinically, broad ligament leiomyoma is divided into true and false types. True ones originate from the smooth muscle tissue or vascular smooth muscle tissue within the broad ligament, while false ones refer to leiomyoma that grows from the uterine body or cervical side wall to the anterior and posterior peritoneum of the broad ligament.

Diagnostic features:

1. Uterine fibroids are sex hormone-dependent tumors, which are more common in middle-aged women. Broad ligament fibroids are formed between the two leaves of the broad ligament on both sides of the uterus or at the fold of the anterior wall of the uterus. When the tumor is small, there are usually no obvious clinical symptoms.

2. CT shows soft tissue mass shadows on one or both sides of the uterus with clear boundaries and obvious enhancement on enhanced scanning, which is equivalent to uterine fibroids. About 50% of tumors are prone to necrosis and cystic changes due to poor blood supply, and the cystic part does not enhance. If the patient's broad ligament myoma grows on the outside of the uterus, a slightly low-density shadow may be seen during the enhancement period, which can easily be misdiagnosed as an ovarian lesion.

3. Broad ligament myomas are relatively large, especially when they degenerate into pseudocysts, which are difficult to differentiate from ovarian cystic tumors clinically.

4. Due to the restriction of the anterior and posterior leaves of the broad ligament, most of the lumps are in the shape of strips, dumbbells, or flat pancakes, which are basically consistent with the central level of the uterine body and do not move away from the uterine body.

In summary, when uterine broad ligament myoma is suspected clinically, CT enhanced scanning should be performed, and while carefully observing the images, it should be combined with comprehensive clinical analysis to avoid misdiagnosis.

The above is an introduction to what the broad ligament of the uterus is. I believe that after reading the above introduction, you will have a certain understanding of the broad ligament of the uterus. From the above introduction, we can know that the broad ligament of the uterus plays the role of fixing the uterus, so it has a great effect on the uterus. I hope that through the introduction of this article, everyone can understand more about what the broad ligament of the uterus is.