Faculty of Physical Therapy
❑Course Title: Anatomy II
❑Course Code: FM 108
❑Department: Anatomy and embryology
❑Lecture Title: Medial compartment and back of the
thigh
❑Lecturer Name : [Link]. Morsy Abdelfattah Morsy
Medial compartment of the thigh
❑ Objectives:
➢ By the end of this lecture the students will be able to:
▪ Identify and describe the muscles of medial
compartment of the thigh
▪ Identify and recognized the obturator nerve and its
branches.
▪ Identify and describe the muscles of the back of the thigh
(origin, insertion, nerve supply and action)
❑ Muscles of the medial side of the thigh:
1- Gracilis muscle lies on the surface of the medial side of the
thigh.
2-The other muscles are arranged in three layers:
A- Anterior layer: (Pectineus and adductor longus).
B- Middle layer (Obturator externus and adductor brevis).
C- Posterior layer (Adductor magnus).
➢ These muscles arise from pubic bone (Body and Superior &
Inferior rami).
➢ All of them except gracilis are inserted into the back of femur.
➢ All of them except pectineus are supplied by obturator nerve.
➢ All of them act as adductor of the thigh.
❑ Gracilis:
❖ Origin:
➢ A line on the external surfaces of the body of
the pubis, the inferior pubic ramus, and the
ramus of the ischium
❖ Insertion:
➢ Upper part of medial surface of shaft of the
tibia
❖ Nerve supply:
➢ Obturator nerve [L2,3]
❖ Action:
➢ Adducts the thigh at hip joint.
➢ Flexes the leg at knee joint
❑ Pectineus:
❖ Origin:
➢ Pectineal line and adjacent bone of pelvis
❖ Insertion:
➢ Oblique line extending from base of lesser
trochanter to Linea aspera on posterior
surface of upper part of the femur
❖ Nerve supply:
➢ Femoral nerve [L2,3]
❖ Action:
➢ Adducts and flexes thigh at hip joint
Gracilis muscle
Insertion Origin
Origin and insertion of pectineus muscle
Insertion Origin
❑ Adductor longus:
❖ Origin:
➢ External surface of body of pubis (triangular
depression inferior to pubic crest and lateral
to symphysis pubis)
❖ Insertion:
➢ Linea aspera on middle one-third of shaft of
femur
❖ Nerve supply:
➢ Obturator nerve (anterior division) [L2,3,4]
❖ Action:
➢ Adducts and medially rotates thigh at hip
joint
❑ Adductor brevis:
❖ Origin:
➢ External surface of body of pubis and
inferior pubic ramus
❖ Insertion:
➢ Posterior surface of upper part of the femur
and upper one-third of Linea aspera
❖ Nerve supply:
➢ Obturator nerve[L2,3]
❖ Action:
➢ Adducts thigh at hip joint
Origin and insertion of adductor longus and brevis muscles:
Adductor
Longus Adductor
Brevis Adductor
Longus
Adductor
Brevis.
Insertion Origin
❑ Adductor magnus:
❖ Origin:
➢ Adductor part from ischiopubic ramus.
➢ Hamstring part from lateral part of lower region of ischial tuberosity.
❖ Insertion:
➢ Adductor part into posterior surface of upper part of the femur, Linea
aspera, medial supracondylar line
➢ Hamstring part into adductor tubercle and medial supracondylar line
❖ Nerve supply:
➢ Adductor part from Obturator nerve [L2,3,4]
➢ Hamstring part from Sciatic nerve (tibial division) [L4,S3]
❖ Action:
➢ Adductor part :Adducts and medially rotates thigh at hip joint
➢ Hamstring parts: Extends the thigh at hip joint.
❑ Obturator externus:
❖ Origin:
➢ External surface of obturator membrane and adjacent bones
❖ Insertion:
➢ Trochanteric fossa
❖ Nerve supply:
➢ Obturator nerve (posterior division) [L3,4]
❖ Action:
➢ Externally (lateral) rotates the thigh at the hip joint
Origin and Insertion of obturator externus muscle:
Insertion Origin
Origin and Insertion of adductor magnus muscle
Adductor
part
Adductor
Hamstring part
part
Hamstring
part
Origin
Insertion
❑ Obturator Nerve: Lumber plexus
❖The obturator nerve arises from the
lumbar plexus (ventral division of (L2,
3, 4) and emerges on the medial
border of the psoas muscle within the
abdomen .
Obturator
❖It runs forward on the lateral wall of nerve
Obturator
the pelvis to reach the upper part of externus
the obturator foramen, where it divides
into anterior and posterior divisions .
❖ Branches: Adductor
❑ The anterior division: brevis
➢ It passes downward in front of the Anterior
obturator externus and the adductor division
brevis and behind the pectineus and Adductor
adductor longus. Longus
➢ It gives muscular branches to the
gracilis, adductor brevis, and
adductor longus, and occasionally to
the pectineus.
➢ It gives articular branches to the hip
joint.
❑ The posterior division:
➢ It pierces the obturator externus and
passes downward behind the
adductor brevis and in front of the Obturator externes
adductor magnus . muscle
➢ It gives muscular branches to the
obturator externus, to the adductor
part of the adductor magnus, and
occasionally to the adductor brevis Adductor
Posterior brevis
➢ It terminates by descending through division of
the opening in the adductor magnus obturator Adductor
to supply the knee joint. nerve magnus
Origin and distribution of obturator nerve
Back of the thigh
❑ Posterior compartment:
➢ Muscles: Biceps femoris,
semitendinosus, semimembranosus,
and hamstring part of the adductor
magnus.
➢ They are collectively known as the
'hamstrings’.
➢ All except the short head of biceps
femoris cross both the hip and knee
joints.
➢ As a group, the hamstrings flex the
leg at the knee joint and extend the
thigh at the hip joint.
➢ They are also rotators at both joints.
➢ Nerve supply: Sciatic nerve.
❑ Biceps femoris:
❖Origin:
➢ Long head from inferomedial
part of the upper area of the
ischial tuberosity.
➢ Short head from lateral lip of
Linea aspera
❖Insertion:
➢ Head of fibula
❖Nerve supply:
➢ Sciatic nerve [L5 to S2]
❖Action:
➢ Flexes and Laterally rotates leg
at knee joint.
➢ Extends and laterally rotates
thigh at hip joint.
Head of the
fibula
❑ Biceps femoris muscle: Origin of biceps
femoris
Insertion Short head Long head
❑ Semitendinosus:
❖Origin:
➢ Inferomedial part of the upper
area of the ischial tuberosity with
long head of biceps femoris
muscle.
❖Insertion:
➢ Upper part of medial surface of
the tibia
❖Nerve supply:
➢ Sciatic nerve [L5 to S2]
❖ Action:
➢ Flexes leg at knee joint.
➢ Extends thigh at hip joint.
➢ Medially rotates the thigh at the
hip joint and the leg at the knee
joint.
❑ Semitendinosus:
Origin:
Insertion
❑ Semimembranosus:
❖Origin:
➢ Superolateral part of the upper
area of the ischial tuberosity
❖Insertion:
➢ Groove on the back of medial
condyle of the tibia.
❖Nerve supply:
➢ Sciatic nerve [L5,S1,S2]
❖Action:
➢ Flexes leg at knee joint.
➢ Extends thigh at hip joint.
➢ Medially rotates the thigh at the
hip joint and the leg at the knee
joint.
❑ Semimembranosus:
Origin
Insertion
❑ Adductor magnus:
❖Origin:
➢ Hamstring (Ischial) part from
lateral part of lower region of
ischial tuberosity
❖Insertion:
➢ Adductor tubercle and medial
supracondylar line
❖Nerve supply:
➢ Sciatic nerve (tibial division)
[L5; S1,2]
❖Action:
➢ Extends the thigh at hip joint.
❑ Adductor magnus:
Origin
Insertion
❑ Insertion of Sartorius(S), Gracillus(G) and Semitendinosus(S)
muscles into the upper part of medial surface of the tibia just
inferior and medial to tibial tuberosity
S
G
S
❑ Insertion of Sartorius, Gracilis
and Semitendinosus(SGS) into
upper part of the medial surface
of the tibia just inferior and
medial to the tibial tuberosity Sartorius Semitendinosus
Gracilis
MCQ
1-Which of the following muscle arises from the upper lateral part of the upper region of
ischial tuberosity?
[Link]
[Link]
[Link] femoris
[Link] part of adductor magnus
2-Which of the following is a nerve supply to long head of the biceps femoris muscle?
[Link] peroneal
[Link] peroneal
[Link] peroneal
[Link]
3-Which one of the following regarding obturator nerve is true?
[Link] arises from ventral division of L2,3,4
[Link] anterior division supplies the adductor magnus
[Link] posterior division is nerve supply the hip joint
[Link] descends on the lateral border of psoas major muscle
4-Which one of the following statements best describes the gracilis muscle?
[Link] inserted into the upper part of medial surface of the tibia
[Link] takes its nerve supply from the femoral nerve
[Link] adduct the leg and flex the thigh
[Link] arises from the body of the ischium
5- Which one of the following muscles flex the knee joint only?
[Link] head of biceps femoris
[Link] head of biceps femoris
[Link]
[Link]
References
1. Gray H, Anatomy of the Human Body. 20th ed. New York:
Bartleby 2000.
2. Gray, s anatomy for students by Richard Drake and A. Wayne
Vogel, 2019.
3. Snell R. " Clinical Anatomy by Regions ' 8th ed. Lippincott
Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia, 2008.
4. Agur A. & Dalley A. " Atlas of Anatomy" Lippincott Williams
and Wilkins, Philadelphia, 2005
Thanks, with the best wishes.
[Link]/Morsy Abd Elfattah.
