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The external urethral sphincter is the skeletal muscle that allows voluntary control over urination.

1 Anatomy

Men have a longer urethra than women. This means that women tend to be more susceptible to infections of the bladder ( cystitis). The length of a male's urethra, and the fact in contains a number of bends makes catheterisation more difficult.

In the human female, the urethra is about 1-1.5 inches (2.5-4 cm) long and opens in the vulva between the clitoris and the vaginal opening. In the human male, the urethra is about 8 inches (20 cm) long and opens at the end of the penis.

The urethra is divided into three parts in men, named after the location:

• The prostatic urethra crosses through the prostate gland. There is a small opening where the vas deferens enters.
• The membranous urethra is a small (1 or 2 cm) portion passing through the external urethral sphincter. This is the narrowest part of the urethra.
• The spongy (or penile) urethra runs along the length of the penis on its ventral (underneath) surface. It is about 15-16 cm in length, and travels through the corpus spongiosumCorpus spongiosum is the mass of spongy tissue surrounding the male urethra within the penis. See cavernous body of penis..

2 Histology

The epitheliumIn zootomy, epithelium is a tissue composed of epithelial cells. Such tissue tends to surround parts of the body, somewhat like a cell membrane. It is also used to form glands. The epithelium is usually the layer of cells 'closer' to the outside world. of the urethra starts off as transitional cells as it exits the bladder. Further along the urethra there are stratified columnar cells, then stratified squamous cells near the external meatus (exit hole).

There are small mucusMucus is a slippery secretion of the lining of various membranes in the body ( mucous membranes). Mucus aids in the protection of the lungs by trapping foreign particles that enter the nose during normal breathing. Additionally, it prevents tissues from d-secreting urethral glands, that help protect the epithelium from the corrosive urine.

3 Medical problems of the urethra

• HypospadiasHypospadias is a birth defect of the urethra in the male that involves an abnormally placed urethral meatus (opening). Instead of opening at the tip of the glans of the penis, a hypospadic urethra opens anywhere along a line running from the tip along the is a form of abnormal development of the urethra in the male, where the opening is not quite where it should be (it occurs lower than normal in hypospadias). A chordee is when the urethra develops between the penis and the scrotumabdomen that contains the testes and helps regulate their temperature. In male animals, the scrotum is an external bag of skin and muscle containing the testicles. It is an extension of the abdomen, and is located between the penis and anus. The function.
• Infection of the urethra is urethritisUrethritis is an inflammation of the urethra. The symptoms are dysuria, which is pain (usually burning pain) on urination (micturition). In the diagnostic approach to urethritis, physicians classify the disease as gonococcal urethritis or non-gonococcal u, said to be more common in females than males. Urethritis is a common cause of dysuriaIn medicine, specifically urology, dysuria refers to any difficulty in urination. It is sometimes accompanied by pain. It is most often a result of an infection of the urinary tract. In men, the urinary system overlaps with the reproductive system, so dys (pain when urinating).
• Related to urethritis is so called urethral syndrome
• Passage of kidney stones through the urethra can be painful and subsequently it can lead to urethral strictures

Endoscopy of the bladder via the urethra is called cystoscopy.