Question

During abdominal surgery, the surgeon makes a cut lateral to the linea alba. The muscle that would be cut is the

A) digastric.
B) external abdominal oblique.
C) rectus abdominis.
D) scalenus.
E) splenius.

Answer 1

In an abdominal surgery with an incision made lateral to the linea alba, the muscle that would be cut is the external abdominal oblique, which is the most superficial muscle of the antero-lateral abdominal wall.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question posed involves identifying which muscle would be cut if an incision is made lateral to the linea alba during abdominal surgery. The linea alba is a fibrous structure that runs along the midline of the abdomen, essentially dividing it symmetrically, and encloses the rectus abdominis muscles, which are paired, long, and linear. Given their medial location, it's clear they're not the muscles directly cut when an incision is made laterally.

The muscles of the antero-lateral abdominal wall include the external oblique, internal oblique, and the transversus abdominis. The external oblique, being the most superficial and located laterally to the rectus abdominis, would be the muscle that is cut during the surgery described. Thus, the correct answer to the question is B) external abdominal oblique.