On innervation, especially, sensory innervation of human female outer genitals in the latter stage of fetal life

Abstract

A common epithelium is found between the glans clitoridis and the inner plate of praeputium clitoridis in human fetus of the latter stage, Their separation seems to be completed after birth. The outer plate of the praeputium is provided with hair follicles only in its radical part. Venous plexus and papillae are formed in the inner but not in the outer plate. Between the two plates of the praeputium blood vessels and branch bundles from the n. dorsalis clitoridis are found running. The frenulum clitoridis is lined by a 7-8 rowed uncornified stratified flat epithelium, an extention from the common apithelium above. The papillar formation into the epithelium from the propria is poor, but venous plexus in the propria is rather conspicuously developed. In the labium minus in late fetal stage, the inner plate is covered by a flat epithelium similar to but thinner than that of the vertibulum vaginae, and in its basal layer is found a pigmentation more marked than that in the vertibulum vaginas. The epithelium of the outer plate is thinner than that of the inner plate but is pigmented as darkly. In the propria of both the plates blood vessels, especially, venous plexus are in good development and papillae are also in powerful formation. Only the sebaceous glands without hair follicles are as yet very poorly developed, a small number of them being found in the outer plate alone. © 1957, International Society of Histology and Cytology. All rights reserved.