Superior hypogastric plexus

Nerve: Superior hypogastric plexus
The right sympathetic chain and its connections with the thoracic, abdominal, and pelvic plexuses. (Hypogastric plexus is labeled on right, fourth from the bottom.)
Lower half of right sympathetic cord.
Latin	plexus hypogastricus inferior
Gray's	subject #220 987
MeSH	Hypogastric+Plexus

The superior hypogastric plexus (in older texts, hypogastric plexus or presacral nerve) is a plexus of nerves situated on the vertebral bodies below the bifurcation of the abdominal aorta.

Structure

The superior hypogastric plexus is situated around the abdominal aorta between the origin of the inferior mesenteric artery and the splitting of the abdominal aorta into the two common iliac arteries. It receives contributions from the two lower lumbar splanchnic nerves, which are branches of the ganglionated trunk (chain ganglia). This plexus continues down into the pelvis as the two pelvic nerves, which continue to form the inferior hypogastric plexus located within the pelvic basin. The inferior hypogastric plexus receives additional contributions from the sacral splanchnic branches of the ganglionated trunk and the pelvic splanchnic nerves from the anterior primary rami of S2-4.

Additional images

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External links

• Anatomy at UMich pelvic_autonomic_module/pelvic_page04
• posteriorabdomen at The Anatomy Lesson by Wesley Norman (Georgetown University) (posteriorabdmus&nerves)
• pelvis at The Anatomy Lesson by Wesley Norman (Georgetown University) (pelvicsympathnerves)
• Human anatomy at Dartmouth figures/chapter_32/32-6.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 As such, some of the information contained within it may be outdated.