A 36-year-old woman is admitted to the hospital for the imminent birth of her baby. The decision is made to perform an emergency cesarean section. A Pfannenstiel incision is used to reach the uterus by making a transverse incision through the external sheath of the rectus muscles, about 2 cm above the pubic bones. It follows natural folds of the skin and curves superior to the mons pubis. Which of the following nerves is most at risk when this incision is made?

The anterior cutaneous branch of the iliohypogastric nerve is responsible for the innervation of the skin above the mons pubis. This nerve arises from the T12 and L1 spinal nerves and runs transversely around the abdominal wall and over the lowest portion of the rectus sheath. It is the first cutaneous nerve situated superior to the mons pubis. Nerves from the T11 and the T12 ventral rami terminate below the umbilicus but superior to the mons pubis. The ilioinguinal nerve courses through the inguinal canal, commonly on the lateral side of the spermatic cord and is therefore typically inferior to the incision. The lateral femoral cutaneous nerve travels lateral to the psoas muscle and emerges from the abdomen about an inch medial to the anterior superior iliac spine, passing thereafter to the lateral aspect of the thigh.