The dorsal artery of the penis is a bilaterally paired terminal branch of the

internal pudendal artery The internal pudendal artery is one of the three pudendal arteries. It branches off the internal iliac artery, and provides blood to the external genitalia. Structure The internal pudendal artery is the terminal branch of the anterior trunk ...

which passes upon the dorsum of the penis to the base of the

glans penis In male human anatomy, the glans penis or penile glans, commonly referred to as the glans, (; from Latin ''glans'' meaning "acorn") is the bulbous structure at the Anatomical terms of location#Proximal and distal, distal end of the human penis ...

, where it unites with its contralateral partner and supply the glans and foreskin. The dorsal artery of the penis provides blood supply to the skin and fascia of the penis (including the foreskin), and the erective tissues of the penis (especially the glans penis). The dorsal artery of the penis may be damaged in traumatic amputation of the penis and repairing the dorsal artery surgically prevents skin loss, but it is not essential for sexual and urinary function. Its

hemodynamics Hemodynamics or haemodynamics are the dynamics of blood flow. The circulatory system is controlled by homeostatic mechanisms of autoregulation, just as hydraulic circuits are controlled by control systems. The hemodynamic response continuously ...

and

blood pressure Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure of Circulatory system, circulating blood against the walls of blood vessels. Most of this pressure results from the heart pumping blood through the circulatory system. When used without qualification, the term ...

can be assessed to test for sexual impairment.

Structure

The homologous artery in the female is the dorsal artery of clitoris.

Origin

The dorsal artery of the penis is a terminal branch of the

, arising at the inferior border of the symphysis pubis.

Course and relations

It passes between the crus penis and the

pubic symphysis The pubic symphysis (: symphyses) is a secondary cartilaginous joint between the left and right superior rami of the pubis of the hip bones. It is in front of and below the urinary bladder. In males, the suspensory ligament of the penis attache ...

of the pelvis to reach the dorsal surface of the corpus cavernosus penis. As it pierces the

perineal membrane The perineal membrane is an anatomical term for a fibrous membrane in the perineum. The term "inferior fascia of urogenital diaphragm", used in older texts, is considered equivalent to the perineal membrane. It is the superior border of the super ...

, it (depending upon the source) passes between the two layers of the

suspensory ligament of the penis The suspensory ligament of the penis is a triangular midline structure anchoring the penis to the pubic symphysis, holding the penis close to the pubic bone and supporting it during erection. The ligament does not directly connect to the corpus c ...

, or pierces the lateral lamina of the suspensory ligament of penis. It passes distally along the dorsum of the penis to reach the base of the

. In the dorsum of the penis, it passes in between the

deep dorsal vein of penis In human male anatomy, the dorsal veins of the penis are blood vessels that drain the shaft ( corpora cavernosa, corpus spongiosum), the skin and the glans of the human penis. They are typically located in the midline on the dorsal aspect of t ...

(situated medially to the artery) and dorsal nerve of penis (situated laterally to the artery); it is situated superficial to the

Fate

At the base of the glans penis, it anastomoses with its contralateral counterpart to form an arterial circle which supplies

and

foreskin In male Human body, human anatomy, the foreskin, also known as the prepuce (), is the double-layered fold of Human skin, skin, Mucous membrane, mucosal and Muscle tissue, muscular tissue at the distal end of the human penis that covers the glans ...

(prepuce).

Anastomoses

It sends branches through the fibrous sheath of the corpus cavernosum penis to

anastomose An anastomosis (, : anastomoses) is a connection or opening between two things (especially cavities or passages) that are normally diverging or branching, such as between blood vessels, leaf veins, or streams. Such a connection may be normal (su ...

with the

deep artery of the penis The deep artery of the penis (artery to the corpus cavernosum) is a small collateral branch of the internal pudendal artery that supplies the corpus cavernosum. The artery enters the crus of penis at the crus' anterior extremity. Anatomy Ori ...

. It anastomoses with the artery of bulb of penis. It terminates by anastomosing with its contralateral partner.

Branches and territory

The dorsal artery of the penis supplies the skin and fascia of the penis including the

(prepuce), the

corpus cavernosum penis A corpus cavernosum penis (singular) (from Latin, characterised by "cavities/ hollows" of the penis, : corpora cavernosa) is one of a pair of sponge-like regions of erectile tissue, which contain most of the blood in the penis of several animal ...

, and the (especially) the

. Its superficial collateral branches are distributed to the integuments of the penis. It gives deep/perforating collateral branches to the

(despite this, its contribution to erectile function is inconsistent). Through retrograde flow it helps supply the

skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different ...

of the distal shaft. It also gives branches to the circumflex arteries that supply the corpus spongiosum.

Additional images

File:Penvein.png, Arteries and veins of the penis (Spanish) File:Gray588.png, The penis in transverse section, showing the blood vessels. File:Gray1158.png, Diagram of the arteries of the penis. File:Penis cross section.svg, Cross section of penis

References

External links

* - "Cross-section of the penis." * * () * * {{Authority control Arteries of the abdomen Human penis anatomy