Step 1. Incision of peritoneum A. Mattei, Christoph Würnschimmel, Pietro Grande, Giovanni Battista Di Pierro

Starting laterally to the medial umbilical ligament at the entrance of the femoral canal, the peritoneum covering the external iliac artery is incised and opened along the artery to the area of the promontorium. The vas deferens is cauterized and transected. The underlying  ureter is often visible, and its crossing of the common iliac artery represents the template’s cranial boundary. If the ureter is not visible, it is carefully located and gently mobilized. Special care should be taken not to injure or apply tension to the ureter and to leave intact the periureteral tissue.