Anatomy of the Anterior Abdominal Wall and Groin

Abstract

The outline of the anterior abdominal wall is approximately hexagonal. It is bounded superiorly by the arched costal margin (with the xiphisternal junction at the summit of the arch). The lateral boundary on either side is, arbitrarily, the mid-axillary line (between the lateral part of the costal margin and the summit of the iliac crest). Inferiorly, on each side, the anterior abdominal wall is bounded in continuity, by the anterior half of the iliac crest, inguinal ligament, pubic crest and pubic symphysis.