< b>Fallopian tube: One of the two Fallopian tubes that transport the egg
from the ovary to the uterus (the womb). In the diagram, the Fallopian tubes are
not labeled but are well shown running between the uterus and ovaries.
The Fallopian tubes have small hair-like projections called cilia on the cells
of the lining. These tubal cilia are essential to the movement of the egg through
the tube into the uterus. If the tubal cilia are damaged by infection, the egg may
not get 'pushed along' normally but may stay in the tube.
Infection can also cause partial or complete blockage of the tube with scar tissue,
physically preventing the egg from getting to the uterus.
Any process (such as infection, endometriosis, tumors, or scar tissue in the
pelvis (pelvic adhesions) that cause twisting or chinking of the tube) that damages
the Fallopian tube or narrows its diameter increases the chance of an ectopic pregnancy:
a pregnancy developing in the Fallopian tube or another abnormal location outside
the uterus.
These tubes bear the name of Gabriele Falloppio (also spelled Falloppia), a 16th-century
(c. 1523-62) Italian physician and surgeon who was expert in anatomy, physiology
and pharmacology. He was an early expert on syphilis and one of the great surgeons
of the age. Of the various works by Falloppio only the "Observationes anatomicae",
a work of great originality, was published during his lifetime. In it he made a
number of contributions to the knowledge of centers of ossification, to the detailed
account of muscles, and to the understanding of the vascular system and the kidneys.
His description of the uterine tubes was sufficiently accurate that they bear his
name. With Vesalius and Eustachi, Fallopio is often seen as one of the three heroes
of anatomy.
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