Lab 11. Anterior And Medial Thigh Flashcards
The anterior compartment muscles, vastus lateralis and intermedius are found where to the femur?
Anterior, lateral, and posterior
-lateral Intermuscular septum attaches to the linea aspera
Where is the medial compartment found?
-mostly medial, but with linea aspera attachments to the posterior
What separates the anterior and medial compartments?
-separated anteromedially by an Intermuscular septum along the medial margin of the sartorius
What feeds the anterior compartment?
-femoral artery and the femoral nerve
What feeds the medial compartment?
-deep femoral and obturator arteries and the obturator nerve
3 superficial inguinal tributaries to the GSV?
- superficial external pudendal
- superficial epigastric
- superficial circumflex iliac
Saphenous opening, what is inside?
-great saphenous vein goes through the saphenous opening (circular deficiency in the fascia lata) and becomes the deeper femoral vein.
What does fascia lata give off?
-as with any deep fascia, fascia lata gives off internally projecting septa, which form the large compartments, but will also invest individual muscles.
Where does the lateral Intermuscular septum attach?
-attaches to the linea aspera on the posterior of the femoral shaft
Position of vastus intermedius?
-is deep to rectus femoris and vastus lateralis
Sartorius origin?
- L. sartor, to patch, a tailor
- a tailor sits cross-legged, the sartorius actions put the lower limb in this position (abducts hip, laterally rotates hip, flexes hip and flexes knee)
What compartment is pectineus belong to?
-can be classified as anterior compartment when considering the femoral nerve innervation, but is more appropriately classified as medial compartment due to its spatial arrangement and function as an adductor
Iliopsoas
- primarily considered a posterior abdominal muscle
- pass into the thigh, forming part of the floor of the femoral triangle
*combination of the iliacus and psoas major of the abdominal cavity
Quadriceps tendon
- patella has formed within
- all four quadriceps muscle tendon converge to form the quadriceps tendon
*quadriceps tendon does NOT refer to any of the quadriceps tendinous attachments at their origins, only to the tendons between the muscles and the patella
Patellar ligament
-continuation of the quadriceps tendon beyond the patella to its attachment on the tibial tuberosity
Boundaries of the femoral triangle?
Superior- inguinal ligament
Inferolateral- sartorius
Inferomedial- adductor longus
Floor- iliopsoas (more lateral) and pectineus (more medial) muscles
Contents of femoral triangle, from lateral to medial?
- femoral nerve
- femoral artery
- femoral vein
- lymphatics
*femoral nerve is only taggable in the thigh near inguinal ligament. Once it passes into the thigh, it immediately branches into numerous cutaneous and muscular branches
Femoral nerve innervates?
-provides motor and sensory innervation to structures of the anterior compartment
Femoral sheath
-an extension of transversalis fascia from the abdomen and is subdivided into three compartments.
Three compartments of femoral sheath, lateral to medial?
- lateral- containing the femoral branch of the genitofemoral nerve and the femoral artery, the continuation of the external iliac artery after it passes deep to the inguinal ligament
- intermediate- containing the femoral vein
- medial-contains fat and lymphatics
3 arteries arising from the femoral artery
- superficial external pudendal artery
- superficial epigastric artery
- superficial circumflex iliac artery
Adductor longus and artery positions
-deep femoral artery posterior to the adductor longus, while the femoral artery progresses anterior to the adductor longus
Features of the lateral circumflex femoral artery
- typically branches off the deep femoral, but may come from the femoral artery directly
- passes laterally, deep to the superior end of the rectus femoris
- supplies the muscles and soft tissue of lateral thigh
3 branches of the lateral circumflex femoral artery
- ascending- passes toward the tip of the greater trochanter to anastomose with the inferior gluteal artery
- transverse- passes laterally around proximal femoral shaft to anastomose with the medial circumflex femoral artery
- descending- courses inferiorly between the rectus femoris and vastus intermedius to anastomose with the genicular arteries of the knee
Features of the medial circumflex femoral artery?
- it may arise from either the deep femoral or the femoral artery
- passes posterior between the iliopsoas and pectineus muscles of the floor of the femoral triangle
- is the most important blood supply to the head and neck of the femur
Nerve innervation pattern
-most nerves follow a fascia plane that runs at an intermediate depth, thus the more superficial muscles are fed from their deep surface, while the deeper muscles are fed from their superficial surface
Adductor canal
- fascial compartment located deep to the sartorius muscle
- a sheath of connective tissue that encloses the femoral vessels, continuous from the apex of the triangle to the adductor hiatus
- begins at the apex of the femoral triangle (crossing point of sartorius and adductor longus)
- ends at the adductor hiatus (opening in adductor magnus, vessels change name from femoral to popliteal at this aperture
- contains femoral artery/vein and 2 branches of the femoral nerve
Nerve branches in the adductor canal (branches of the femoral nerve)
- nerve to the vastus medialis: dives into the vastus medialis
- saphenous nerve: continues along the margin of the sartorius to eventually pierce the crural fascia of the leg to run with the great saphenous vein
- do not exit the adductor canal via the hiatus, they pierce the fascia of the canal
Gracilis
- thin like a belt, longitudinally-oriented (straight down the medial surface of the thigh)
- can hide inside an investing jar
Deep femoral artery dives?
-dives b/t the pectineus and the adductor longus
Adductor brevis position?
-deep to the pectineus and adductor longus
Perforating branches of the deep femoral artery
-feed posterior compartment of the thigh
Deep femoral artery location ?
-along the surfaces of the adductor brevis and magnus muscles
Anterior branch of the obturator nerve
-b/t the pectineus and adductor brevis muscles (anterior to adductor brevis)
Posterior branch of the obturator nerve
-appearing from posterior to the adductor brevis and anterior to the adductor magnus
