Blood supply of the female pelvis (English)

Sagittal view of the female pelvis. At the level of the sacroiliac joint, the bilateral common iliac artery bifurcates into the external and internal iliac arteries. The external iliac artery courses towards the thigh to continue as the femoral artery, whereas the internal iliac artery gives off multiple branches to supply the pelvic wall and viscera. It can be divided into anterior and posterior divisions. The branches of the posterior division are the iliolumbar, superior gluteal and lateral sacral arteries. The anterior division gives off the uterine, obturator, umbilical, vaginal, superior vesical, internal pudendal, middle anorectal and inferior gluteal arteries. The veins of the female pelvis collect blood from the urogenital organs and the rectum and drain into the internal iliac vein (or inferior mesenteric vein in the case of the superior [ano]rectal vein. From the internal iliac vein, the blood is transported to the common iliac vein and from there to the inferior vena cava. The right and left ovarian veins directly drain directly to the inferior vena cava and left renal vein, respectively.