Anatomy

An understanding of the urethral anatomy is paramount to the diagnosis and treatment of urethral stricture disease. The normal male urethra measures approximately 30 french, 20 cm long and is surrounded by the corpus spongiosum. The corpus spongiosum has a dual blood supply whereby both distal branches of the deep internal pudendal artery provide vascular supply. The deep internal pudendal artery then continues as the common penile artery. The male urethra is divided into an anterior and posterior division. The anterior division consists of the fossa navicularis, pendulous and bulbar urethra. The posterior division consists of the membranous and prostatic urethra. The membranous urethra marks the dividing line between the anterior and posterior urethra. Medical nomenclature has commonly referred to narrowing of the urethra of th