The uterine horns (cornua of uterus) are the points in the upper

uterus The uterus (from Latin ''uterus'', : uteri or uteruses) or womb () is the hollow organ, organ in the reproductive system of most female mammals, including humans, that accommodates the embryonic development, embryonic and prenatal development, f ...

where the fallopian tubes or

oviduct The oviduct in vertebrates is the passageway from an ovary. In human females, this is more usually known as the fallopian tube. The eggs travel along the oviduct. These eggs will either be fertilized by spermatozoa to become a zygote, or will dege ...

s exit to meet the

ovaries The ovary () is a gonad in the female reproductive system that produces ova; when released, an ovum travels through the fallopian tube/oviduct into the uterus. There is an ovary on the left and the right side of the body. The ovaries are endocr ...

. They are one of the points of attachment for the round ligament of uterus (the other being the

mons pubis In human anatomy, and in mammals in general, the ''mons pubis'' or pubic mound (also known simply as the mons , and known specifically in females as the ''mons Venus'' or ''mons veneris'') is a rounded mass of fatty tissue found over the pubic s ...

). They also provide attachment to the

ovarian ligament The ovarian ligament (also called the utero-ovarian ligament or proper ovarian ligament) is a fibrous ligament that connects the ovary to the lateral surface of the uterus. Structure The ovarian ligament is composed of muscular and fibrous tissue ...

, which is located below the fallopian tube at the back, while the round ligament of uterus is located below the tube at the front. The uterine horns are far more prominent in other animals (such as cows and cats) than they are in

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

s. In the cat, implantation of the embryo occurs in one of the two uterine horns, not the body of the uterus itself. Occasionally, if a fallopian tube does not connect, the uterine horn will fill with blood each month, and a minor one-day surgery will be performed to remove it. Often, people who are born with this have trouble getting

pregnant Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring gestation, gestates inside a woman's uterus. A multiple birth, multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Conception (biology), Conception usually occurs ...

as both

are functional and either may ovulate. The spare

egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the ...

, that cannot travel the fallopian tube, is absorbed into the body.

References

Uterus {{genitourinary-stub