The male urethra is an S-shaped tube about 18-20 cm long that carries both urine and semen. It runs from the bladder neck through the prostate, the pelvic floor and the length of the penis to the external urethral opening at the tip of the glans. It is divided into preprostatic, prostatic, membranous and spongy parts.
| Location | From the internal urethral orifice at the bladder neck, through the prostate, the deep perineal pouch and the corpus spongiosum to the external urethral orifice on the glans |
|---|---|
| Parts |
|
| Nerve Supply | Prostatic plexus (from the inferior hypogastric plexus); Pudendal nerve (sensory to the distal urethra and to the external sphincter) |
| Blood Supply | Inferior vesical artery; Middle rectal artery; Internal pudendal artery branches (artery of the bulb, urethral artery) |
| Venous drainage |
|
| Lymphatic drainage |
|
Carries urine from the bladder and semen from the ejaculatory ducts to the outside of the body.
Its length and curves make catheterisation harder than in women and protect men from most bladder infections. The narrowest points are the external urethral opening and the membranous part. Urethral injury is suspected after pelvic fractures or falls astride an object, especially with blood at the meatus, and blind catheterisation should then be avoided.
Scarring that narrows the urethra after infection, injury or instrumentation, causing a weak, spraying stream and incomplete emptying.
Inflammation of the urethra, most often from sexually transmitted infections such as gonorrhoea or chlamydia, causing discharge and burning.
Tears of the membranous urethra with pelvic fractures or of the bulbar urethra with straddle injuries.
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