What is the scrotum and what does it contain?

The scrotum is a large, pendulous skin sac located below and behind the penis. It houses the testes, epididymides, and the lower parts of the spermatic cords.

What are the layers of the scrotum from superficial to deep?

The scrotum has five main layers: skin, dartos muscle (modified superficial fascia), external spermatic fascia (from external oblique), cremasteric muscle and fascia (from internal oblique), and internal spermatic fascia (from fascia transversalis).

What arteries supply blood to the scrotum?

Blood supply to the scrotum comes from several arteries: superficial external pudendal artery, deep external pudendal artery, scrotal branches of internal pudendal artery, and cremasteric artery (branch of inferior epigastric artery).

How is the scrotum innervated?

Innervation varies by region: anterior 1/3 is supplied by ilioinguinal nerve (L1) and genital branch of genitofemoral nerve (L1), posterior 2/3 by posterior scrotal nerves (from perineal nerve, S3) and perineal branch of posterior cutaneous nerve of thigh (S3), and the dartos muscle by sympathetic fibres via genital branch of genitofemoral nerve.

What are some common clinical conditions affecting the scrotum?

Common conditions include scrotal edema (swelling due to lax skin and dependent position), sebaceous cysts (frequent from abundant sebaceous glands), and scrotal elephantiasis (massive swelling from lymphatic obstruction by filarial worms).

Why does the left side of the scrotum hang lower than the right?

The left half of the scrotum hangs lower because the left spermatic cord is longer than the right, leading to this natural asymmetry.

Where does lymph from the scrotum drain?

Lymph from the scrotum drains into the superficial inguinal lymph nodes.

Scrotum – Layers, Fascia & Thermoregulation

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