In human anatomy

Human anatomy

Human anatomy is primarily the scientific study of the morphology of the human body. Anatomy is subdivided into gross anatomy and microscopic anatomy. Gross anatomy is the study of anatomical structures that can be seen by the naked eye...

, the inguinal triangle is a region of the abdominal wall. It is also known by the eponym

Eponym

An eponym is the name of a person or thing, whether real or fictitious, after which a particular place, tribe, era, discovery, or other item is named or thought to be named...

 Hesselbach's triangle, after Franz Kaspar Hesselbach

Franz Kaspar Hesselbach

Franz Kaspar Hesselbach was a German surgeon and anatomist who was a native of Hammelburg. He was a pupil, and later Prosector under Karl Kaspar von Siebold at Würzburg. Later Hesselbach was a lecturer at Würzburg, where one of his students was Konrad Johann Martin Langenbeck...

.

Boundaries

It is defined by the following structures:

• Medial border: Lateral margin of the rectus sheath, also called linea semilunaris
  Rectus abdominis muscle
  The rectus abdominis muscle, also known as the "six pack", is a paired muscle running vertically on each side of the anterior wall of the human abdomen . There are two parallel muscles, separated by a midline band of connective tissue called the linea alba...
  
  
• Superolateral border: Inferior epigastric vessels
• Inferior border: Inguinal ligament
  Inguinal ligament
  The inguinal ligament is a band running from the pubic tubercle to the anterior superior iliac spine. Its anatomy is very important for operating on hernia patients.-Anatomy:...
  
  , sometimes referred to as Poupart's ligament

This can be remembered by the mnemonic RIP (as direct inguinal hernias rip directly through the abdominal wall).

Clinical significance

The inguinal triangle contains a depression referred to as the medial inguinal fossa

Medial inguinal fossa

The medial inguinal fossa is a depression located within the inguinal triangle on the peritoneal surface of the anterior abdominal wall between the ridges formed by the lateral umbilical fold and the medial umbilical ligament, corresponding to the superficial inguinal ring.-External links: -...

, through which direct inguinal hernia

Direct inguinal hernia

The direct inguinal hernia, a type of inguinal hernia, enters through a weak point in the fascia of the abdominal wall, and its sac is noted to be medial to the inferior epigastric vessels...

s protrude through the abdominal wall.

External links

- superior border - medial border - inferior border