Abstract
The most profound investigation of the anorectal development was performed by Aigner et al. on 79 fetuses from the ninth week on postconceptionem [1]. According to their results during the early prenatal life, the muscular layers of the rectum and of the anal canal derive from the mesenchyme that accompanies the endodermal part of the anorectum. The inner circular layer of the rectum precedes the outer longitudinal layer during the seventh week of embryonic development. The anlagen of the levator muscle and the external sphincter occur within the surrounding mesenchymae. They are clearly separated from each other and they both show the signs of proliferative activity when they get in contact with the bundles of the smooth muscles deriving from the outer longitudinal layer of the rectal wall. As a result both the levator ani and the external sphincter grow larger and get in contact (Fig. 1).
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Bogner, B. (2012). The pathological assessment of the surgical specimens originating from the lower rectum and anal canal. In: Schiessel, R., Metzger, P. (eds) Intersphincteric Resection for Low Rectal Tumors. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-0929-8_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-0929-8_1
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