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Vocabulary-style flashcards covering key muscles, nerves, vessels, landmarks, and clinical concepts related to the anterior and medial compartments of the thigh, as described in the lecture notes.
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Anterior thigh compartment
The region containing knee extensors and hip flexors; muscles include quadriceps femoris, sartorius, and iliopsoas; innervated mainly by the femoral nerve.
Medial thigh compartment
The region containing thigh adductors; muscles include pectineus, adductor longus, brevis, magnus, gracilis, and obturator externus; innervated mainly by the obturator nerve.
Posterior thigh compartment
The region containing hip extensors and knee flexors (hamstrings); innervation mainly from branches of the sciatic nerve.
Iliopsoas
Primary hip flexor formed by iliacus and psoas major; inserts on the lesser trochanter; iliacus innervated by L2–L3, psoas by L1–L3.
Quadriceps femoris
Four-headed muscle group in the anterior thigh that extends the knee; includes rectus femoris, vastus lateralis, vastus medialis, and vastus intermedius; innervated by the femoral nerve.
Rectus femoris
One head of the quadriceps; crosses hip and knee joints; flexes the hip and extends the knee; origin anteroinferior iliac spine and acetabular rim.
Vastus lateralis
Lateral head of the quadriceps; originates from greater trochanter and lateral lip of the linea aspera; inserts on the lateral patella and via the patellar tendon to the tibial tuberosity.
Vastus medialis
Medial head of the quadriceps; originates from the intertrochanteric line and medial lip of the linea aspera; inserts on the medial patella; helps with patellar tracking; extends the knee.
Vastus intermedius
Deep to rectus femoris; originates on the anterior/lateral femoral shaft; inserts on the patellar tendon; assists in knee extension.
Articularis genu
Small deep slip of Vastus Intermedius; retracts the suprapatellar synovial membrane during knee extension to prevent entrapment.
Sartorius
Longest muscle; runs from ASIS to medial tibia; crosses hip and knee; flexes hip and knee; abducts and laterally rotates thigh; innervated by the femoral nerve.
Pes anserinus
Conjoined insertion on the medial tibia for sartorius, gracilis, and semitendinosus; means “goose's foot.”
Patella
Sesamoid bone within the quadriceps tendon; articulates with the femur to facilitate knee extension; patellar ligament/t tendon transmits force to the tibia.
Bipartite patella
Patella with two ossification centers; can mimic a fracture on radiographs; a normal variant in some individuals.
Pectineus
Medial thigh muscle; flexes and adducts the thigh; originates on the pubis and inserts on the pectineal line of the femur; innervation may be femoral, obturator, or both.
Adductor longus
Medial thigh muscle; originates on the pubis; inserts on the medial lip of the linea aspera; flexes and adducts the thigh; primarily innervated by the anterior division of the obturator nerve.
Adductor brevis
Originates from the inferior pubic ramus; inserts on the upper medial lip of the linea aspera; flexes and adducts the thigh; usually innervated by the anterior division of the obturator nerve (can be posterior or both).
Adductor magnus
Large thigh adductor with two heads: adductor (anterior) and hamstring (posterior). Adductor head flexes; hamstring head extends the thigh; innervation: adductor head (posterior division of obturator nerve); hamstring head (tibial division of the sciatic nerve).
Gracilis
Medial thigh muscle; originates on the inferior pubic ramus; inserts on the medial tibia; flexes and adducts the thigh; flexes and medially rotates the leg; innervated by the anterior division of the obturator nerve.
Obturator externus
Deep medial thigh muscle; originates from the margins of the obturator foramen and membrane; inserts on the trochanteric fossa; laterally rotates the thigh; innervation: posterior division of the obturator nerve.
Obturator artery
Branch of the internal iliac artery; supplies the medial thigh; may give a head-to-femur branch via ligamentum teres.
Femoral artery
Main arterial supply to the lower limb; continuation of the external iliac artery after passing under the inguinal ligament; gives off the deep femoral artery.
Deep femoral artery (profunda femoris)
Deep branch of the femoral artery; gives rise to lateral and medial circumflex femoral arteries and perforating branches to the posterior thigh.
Medial femoral circumflex artery
Artery that courses around the proximal femur; anastomoses with other arteries around the hip; supplies the femoral head via ligamentum teres (in some cases).
Lateral femoral circumflex artery
Artery with ascending, transverse, and descending branches; contributes to hip and knee anastomoses around the femur.
Femoral triangle
Triangular space in the upper thigh bordered by the inguinal ligament (superior), the medial border of the adductor longus (medial), and the medial border of the sartorius (lateral); contents: femoral nerve, artery, vein, and lymphatics (naval: nerve, artery, vein, lymphatics).
Saphenous hiatus
Opening in the fascia lata allowing the great saphenous vein to join the femoral vein in the femoral triangle region.
Adductor canal (Hunter's canal)
Channel from the inferior tip of the femoral triangle to the popliteal fossa; boundaries include vastus medialis, vastus adductor membrane, adductor longus and magnus; contents: femoral artery, femoral vein, nerve to vastus medialis, and the saphenous nerve; descending genicular artery also passes through.
Saphenous nerve
Terminal cutaneous branch of the femoral nerve; exits via the vasto-ductor membrane to supply skin of the anteromedial leg and knee.
Descending genicular artery
Branch of the femoral artery that supplies the knee region; travels with the saphenous nerve through the vasto-ductor membrane.
Genitofemoral nerve
L1–L2 nerve; provides cutaneous innervation to part of the anterior thigh (femoral branch) and motor to the cremaster (genital branch).
Lateral femoral cutaneous nerve
Nerve from L2–L3 supplying the skin of the lateral thigh; can be compressed under the inguinal ligament (meralgia paresthetica).
Femoral nerve anterior cutaneous branches
Branches of the femoral nerve that supply the skin of the anterior thigh and knee; saphenous nerve supplies the medial leg as a continuation.
Gait phases
Walking consists of stance (initial contact, loading response, mid stance, terminal stance, preswing) and swing (initial swing, mid swing, terminal swing) phases; involves an inverted pendulum model and dynamic stability.