Urogenital diaphragm

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Urogenital diaphragm

Median sagittal section of pelvis, showing arrangement of fasciae. (Urogenital diaphragm labeled at bottom center, and fascia of urogenital diaphragm labeled at center left.)

Coronal section of anterior part of pelvis, through the pubic arch. Seen from in front. (Fascia of urogenital diaphragm labeled at bottom center.)
Gray's	subject #120 428
Dorlands/Elsevier	d_15/12293501

The urogenital diaphragm is the traditional (but invalid) anatomical term for a layer of the pelvis that separates the deep perineal sac from the upper pelvis, lying between the inferior fascia of the urogenital diaphragm and superior fascia of the urogenital diaphragm.

While this term is used to refer to a layer of the pelvis that separates the deep perineal sac from the upper pelvis, such a discrete border of the sac probably does not exist. While it has no official entry in Terminologia Anatomica, the term is still used casually to refer to the following structures (taken together) :

sphincter urethrae muscle (external urethral muscle )
deep transverse perineal muscle
superficial transverse perineal muscle
perineal membrane

The urogenital diaphragm is often confused with the pelvic floor, which is a true diaphragm supporting many of the pelvic organs. --

SUNY Labs 41:10-0102 - "The Female Perineum: The Perineal Nerve"
SUNY Figs 43:04-09 - "The urinary bladder and the urethra as seen in a frontal section of the female pelvis."
SUNY Labs 44:05-0102 - "The Male Pelvis: The Prostate Gland"
Norman/Georgetown perineum (maleugtriangle3)
Human anatomy at Dartmouth figures/chapter_35/35-1.HTM
Kaye K, Milne N, Creed K, van der Werf B (1997). "The 'urogenital diaphragm', external urethral sphincter and radical prostatectomy.". Aust N Z J Surg 67 (1): 40-4. PMID 9033375.