BACKGROUND/ PURPOSE: The fetal development and anatomy of the muscular structures of the anorectal continence system are unclear. To the pediatric surgeon, these structures are of clinical relevance in reconstructive surgery. The aim of this study was to investigate the fetal development of the anorectal continence organ. METHODS: A male fetus (14 weeks postconceptionem) of 114-mm crown-rump length was sectioned serially at 18-micrometer intervals. The sections were stained, and relevant contours of the sections were transferred onto paper using a Zeiss Axioskop drawing apparatus. The drawings then were scanned and digitized. RESULTS: Three-dimensional images were created (and animated in a video). These have permitted the demonstration of isolated anatomic structures, the disassembling and reassembling of compound structures, as well as the visualization of structures from different angles. CONCLUSIONS: Further studies are now undertaken of older fetal stages through to birth, as well as during postnatal stages. Comparative studies in animals and animations of isolated muscles also are required to show functional capacities. Such studies may lead eventually to an improvement of contemporary surgical techniques. Copyright 2002, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.
BACKGROUND/ PURPOSE: The fetal development and anatomy of the muscular structures of the anorectal continence system are unclear. To the pediatric surgeon, these structures are of clinical relevance in reconstructive surgery. The aim of this study was to investigate the fetal development of the anorectal continence organ. METHODS: A male fetus (14 weeks postconceptionem) of 114-mm crown-rump length was sectioned serially at 18-micrometer intervals. The sections were stained, and relevant contours of the sections were transferred onto paper using a Zeiss Axioskop drawing apparatus. The drawings then were scanned and digitized. RESULTS: Three-dimensional images were created (and animated in a video). These have permitted the demonstration of isolated anatomic structures, the disassembling and reassembling of compound structures, as well as the visualization of structures from different angles. CONCLUSIONS: Further studies are now undertaken of older fetal stages through to birth, as well as during postnatal stages. Comparative studies in animals and animations of isolated muscles also are required to show functional capacities. Such studies may lead eventually to an improvement of contemporary surgical techniques. Copyright 2002, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.