Rectovesical excavation

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Rectovesical excavation
Median sagittal section of male pelvis. (Rectovesical excavation labeled at center right.)
Male pelvic organs seen from right side. Bladder and rectum distended; relations of peritoneum to the bladder and rectum shown in blue. The arrow points to the rectovesical pouch.
Latin	excavatio rectovesicalis
Gray's	subject #246 1152
Dorlands/Elsevier	e_18/12347086

Between the rectum and the bladder the peritoneal cavity forms, in the male, a pouch, the rectovesical excavation (or rectovesical pouch), the bottom of which is slightly below the level of the upper ends of the vesiculae seminales—i. e., about 7.5 cm. from the orifice of the anus.

The corresponding structure in women is the rectouterine pouch.

[edit] Additional images

Median sagittal section of pelvis, showing arrangement of fasciæ.

The peritoneum of the male pelvis.

[edit] External links

• Dictionary at eMedicine rectovesical+pouch
• SUNY Labs 44:02-0201 - "The Male Pelvis: Distribution of the Peritoneum in the Male Pelvis"
• SUNY Labs 44:st-1501 - "The Male Pelvis: Rectovesical pouch"
• Human anatomy at Dartmouth figures/chapter_35/35-1.HTM

This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained herein may be outdated. Please edit the article if this is the case, and feel free to remove this notice when it is no longer relevant.