Urinary system · Pelvis · Male
Spongy urethra !
The spongy urethra is the longest part of the male urethra, running through the bulb and shaft of the penis to its tip; it carries urine and semen outside.
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What it is
The longest part, about 15 cm, inside the corpus spongiosum from the bulb to the opening on the glans; it widens in the bulb and just before the tip (navicular fossa).
What it does
Carries urine and semen to the outside; the bulbourethral glands open into it.
Key facts
- Where
- Longest part, about 15 cm, inside the corpus spongiosum from the perineal membrane to the external meatus; fixed bulbar part and mobile penile part
- Attaches
- Widens in the bulb (intrabulbar fossa) and glans (navicular fossa); bulbourethral and urethral (Littré) glands open into it
- Function
- Carries urine and semen to the outside; bulbar part injured in straddle falls and the commonest site of urethral stricture
Relations
- Course
- From the perineal membrane forward through the bulb of the corpus spongiosum (fixed bulbar part), down at the penoscrotal junction into the mobile penile part, to the external meatus on the glans penis
- Superficial
- Corpus spongiosum, then Buck fascia, dartos and skin; in the perineum, the bulbospongiosus muscle over the bulb
- Above
- Corpora cavernosa, which lie on top of the corpus spongiosum along the shaft
How to find it
The penile part is felt inside the corpus spongiosum along the underside of the shaft; the bulbar part lies in the perineum behind the scrotum. A stricture may be felt as a firm segment; the meatus is inspected for position and narrowing.
On imaging
Retrograde urethrography shows the site and length of a stricture or injury; voiding films show the urethra beyond it. Urethral ultrasound measures the depth of spongiofibrosis.
Common problems
- Strictures, often in the bulbar part; injured in straddle falls.
How it is diagnosed
Urine tests and swabs; urine flow test; urethrogram or a scope (urethroscopy).
Treatment
- Antibiotics for urethritis; widening or surgical repair (urethroplasty) of a stricture.
Clinical notes
- Strictures follow infection (historically gonococcal urethritis), trauma or instruments (catheters, scopes); they are treated by dilation, endoscopic incision or urethroplasty, often with a buccal mucosa graft
- Meatal stenosis and strictures of the navicular fossa are linked with lichen sclerosus and, in boys, with circumcision
- Holding the penis upward straightens the mobile prepubic bend when a catheter or scope is passed
Development
Forms as the urethral folds fuse along the underside of the genital tubercle; incomplete fusion leaves the meatus on the underside (hypospadias). The part in the glans forms last (some texts: from an ectodermal ingrowth).
Related conditions
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
How is the bulbar part of the spongy urethra injured in a straddle fall, and what are the signs?
It is crushed against the pubic arch; blood at the meatus with perineal bruising.
If Buck fascia tears in a spongy urethral injury, where do blood and urine spread?
Under Colles fascia into the scrotum, penis and lower abdominal wall but not the thighs (butterfly perineal bruising).
Which segment of the spongy urethra is the commonest site of stricture?
The bulbar part; the degree of spongiofibrosis decides how it is repaired.
What developmental failure of the spongy urethra causes hypospadias?
Incomplete fusion of the urethral folds along the underside of the genital tubercle, leaving the meatus on the underside.
Educational information, not medical advice. For any symptom, see a health professional.
Its names
- Official Latin (TA2)
- pars spongiosa urethrae masculinae
- Official Spanish (DeCS)
- Porción esponjosa de la uretra masculina
- English (TA2)
- Spongy urethra
- Also called
- penile urethra
Related
Sources: Anatomy, Abdomen and Pelvis, Male Genitourinary Tract.
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.
