Vaginal orifice

Author: Christina Loukopoulou, MSc • Reviewer: Dimitrios Mytilinaios, MD, PhD
Last reviewed: April 15, 2024
Reading time: 1 minute

The vaginal orifice, also known as the introitus, is a median slit marking the entrance to the vagina. It is surrounded by the vaginal vestibule, which is exposed with spreading of the labia.

The vaginal orifice may be partially covered by the hymen, a membrane formed by inward folding mucosa of the vaginal lumen. The hymen is normally incomplete. It has a central perforation to allow for passage of menstrual flow.

The vaginal orifice is found posterior to the urethral orifice, anterior to the superficial perineal body and medial to the labia minora.

Terminology	English: Vaginal orifice Latin: Ostium vaginae Synonym: Orificium vaginae
Definition	The vaginal orifice is the opening to the vaginal canal.

Learn more about the cervix, vagina and vulva in the following study unit:

Sources

All content published on Kenhub is reviewed by medical and anatomy experts. The information we provide is grounded on academic literature and peer-reviewed research. Kenhub does not provide medical advice. You can learn more about our content creation and review standards by reading our content quality guidelines.

Moore, K. L., Dalley, A. F. and Agur, A. (2017). Clinically oriented anatomy (8th ed.). Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.

Standring, S. (2016). Gray's Anatomy (41st ed.). Edinburgh: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone.

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