| Cervical canal | |
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| Details | |
| Synonym | Canal of the cervix, endocervical canal, cervical canal of uterus, cavity of cervix |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | canalis cervicis uteri |
| TA | A09.1.03.018 |
| FMA | 86485 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
Thecervical canal is the flattened canal going through thecervix. The cervix is the lower part of the uterus.
The cervical canal is a tube that connects with theuterine cavity through theinternal os with thevagina through theexternal os. The internal os is smaller than the external os. The external os is a small, circular opening on the rounded end of thecervix. The external os opens into the vagina. The cervical cavity is located at the top of the vagina. The external os is surrounded by two lips, an anterior lip and a posterior lip. The anterior lip is shorter and thicker. Both lips are touching the vaginal wall. Before pregnancy, the external os has a rounded shape. After pregnancy the os changes shape.
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The cervical canal is lined by a tissue called the "endocervical mucosa". This consists of a single layer ofmucinous columnar epithelium. Aftermenopause the tissue goes through changes.[2]
The endocervical mucosa is one place tissue from where cervical cancer (adenocarcinoma) can grow. Endocervical adenocarcinoma, like another cervical cancer (squamous cell carcinoma), often grows fromhuman papilloma virus infection.[3]