The Prostate A Mysterious Organ That Makes Love Potions The prostate gland and seminal vesicles enrich the juice carried by the ductus defens on the way to an important mission to ensure the survival of the human race. Courtesy Ashley Davidof MD Copyright 2010 99380b01.42.8s
The prostate is part of the genitourinary system and is one of the accessory tissues of the male sexual system. It is not an essential organ since removal does not affect fertility.
Structural features include its location around the urethra, its chestnut shape and its close relationship to the the seminal vesicles and ejaculatory ducts. Zonal anatomy has been a more recent method of characterizing the parts of the prostate since its has implications in the diseases that affect the gland.
Fromn a functional standpoint it produces a fluid that provides nutrients for semen and also provides a chemical buffers for the semenal fluid.
Common diseases include prostatitis, benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostate carcinoma.
Diagnostic evaluations include digital rectal examination, serum PSA level, and imaging, usually MRI or ultrasound, though CT may also be useful.
The term prostate is derived from Greek προστάτης – prostates, literally “one who stands before”, “protector”, “guardian” owing to is position relative to the bladder.
Heart Shaped Structure in the Transverse Dimension
T1 Weighted Transrectal MRI
The patient is a 60 year old man. His MRI was performed with a transrectal coil and the image shows the T1 weighted sequence in the axial projection (a,b). The scan shown demonstrates the normal heart shape of the prostate at this level in the axial projection. Zonal anatomy cannot be distinguished since the T1 weighted sequence results in a homogenous signal from all the zones.
The Prostate A Mysterious Organ That Makes Love Potions The prostate gland and seminal vesicles enrich the juice carried by the ductus defens on the way to an important mission to ensure the survival of the human race. Courtesy Ashley Davidof MD Copyright 2010 99380b01.42.8s
