Womb vs. Uterus

Main Difference

The main difference between womb and uterus is that Womb is the part of the reproductive system in which the young are conceived and grow till birth, whereas Uterus is the main organ of the female reproductive system.

Difference Between Womb and Uterus

Comparison Chart

Womb vs. Uterus

The womb and uterus are the terms that are used to describe the anatomical structure of the female reproductive system of mammals. The female reproductive system consists of a vagina, Fallopian tubes, cervix, uterus, and ovaries. The womb is the part of the reproductive system in which the young are conceived and grow till birth while the uterus is the main organ of the female reproductive system. The term ‘womb’ is used during pregnancy, whereas the uterus is a hollow, muscular organ. The womb is large in size; on the other hand, the uterus is small in size than the womb.

What is Womb?

The womb is the organ of the female reproductive mammal where the progeny is conceived and gestate before birth. After the successful fertilization of the egg, the zygote implant itself into the lining of the endometrium of the womb. There it develops into an embryo and then into a fetus by passing through different stages of development. The lining of the endometrium develops placenta that connects the developing fetus to the wall of the womb. This connection helps in the uptake of nutrients from the mother’s blood, thermo-regulation, waste elimination and gas exchange, etc. The umbilical cord is the channel between the placenta and fetus. The wall of the womb plays an important role at the end of the pregnancy. Myometrium consists of smooth muscles. Different types of hormones are released during pregnancy. Oxytocin is the hormone that is involved in the contractions of the smooth muscles of the myometrium. The strength and the frequency of the contractions of these muscles may increase gradually. The smooth muscles of the cervix also dilate. This contraction and dilation of muscles of womb and cervix respectively help in the delivery of the child. The duration and the intensity of the contractions keep on increasing until the fetus is pushed out from the womb.

What is Uterus?

The uterus is that organ of the female reproductive system where the fertilized egg is implanted. The uterus is a hollow, muscular organ that resembles a pear in both size and shape. It is positioned in the pelvic cavity, anterior to the rectum and posterior to the urinary bladder. Cervix is that narrow part of the uterus that joins it to the vagina. It serves as a sphincter and controls the movement of the material in and out of the uterus. Most of the part of the uterus is known as the body in which the implantation of the fertilized egg occurs. The fundus is the superior, domed part of the uterus which joins the Fallopian tubes to the uterus. The uterus is made up of three types of layers, i.e., endometrium, myometrium, and perimetrium. The outermost layer of the uterus is the perimetrium. It is covered with a serosa layer and secretes a watery, serous fluid that lubricates the organ. The middle layer of the uterus is called myometrium. It consists of many layers of visceral muscle tissue that allows the expansion of the uterus during pregnancy and contracts the uterus during the delivery of the offspring. The endometrium is the epithelial layer that surrounds the lumen of the uterus. It is linked with endocrine glands and highly vascular connective tissue. At the time of ovulation, a thick layer of vascular endometrium is produced to receive the zygote. If the fertilization of the egg cell does not occur, it degenerates along with the endometrium layer. This is called menstruation that occurs after every 28 days.

Conclusion

From the above discussion, it is summarized that both womb and uterus are the two anatomical structures of the female reproductive system of mammals. The fetus bearing uterus is known as a womb that is large in size whereas uterus is the important anatomical structure of the female reproductive system that is small in size than the womb.