Profunda femoris artery
Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data
At the time the article was created Jeremy Jones had no recorded disclosures.
View Jeremy Jones's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Kajanan Nithiyananthan had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Kajanan Nithiyananthan's current disclosures- Deep femoral artery
- Deep artery of the thigh
- Profunda femoris arteries
- Profunda femoris artery (PFA)
- Deep femoral arteries
The profunda femoris artery (also known as the deep femoral artery or deep artery of the thigh) is a branch of the femoral artery and is responsible for providing oxygenated blood to the deep structures of the thigh, including the femora.
On this page:
Summary
origin: femoral artery
-
main branches
3 x perforating arteries
termination: within the thigh as the terminal perforating artery (4th perforating artery)
supply: deep tissues of the thigh
-
variants:
absence
duplication
additional branches
varied perforating branch number
Origin
Posterolateral aspect of the femoral artery at the upper part of the femoral triangle, 2-5 cm below the inguinal ligament.
Course
At first lateral to the femoral artery, it then runs behind it and the femoral vein to the medial side of the femur, and passes downward behind the adductor longus muscle, ending in a small terminal branch that pierces the adductor magnus muscle.
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Termination
At the lower third of thigh in its terminal fourth perforating branch.
Branches
-
1st-4th perforating arteries
pass backwards through adductor muscles near linea aspera
1st above and 4th below adductor brevis, while the 2nd and 3rd perforators go through it
muscular arteries
Relations
posterior: iliacus, pectineus, adductor brevis, adductor magnus
anterior: adductor longus
lateral: origin of vastus medialis
Variants
absence
duplication 5
additional branches
variable site/side of origin of the medial and lateral femoral circumflex
medial and lateral femoral circumflex originating from the femoral artery
may arise or run anterior, lateral or medial to the femoral artery
variable distance below the inguinal ligament of origin
Mnemonic
Mnemonic for the deep branches of the thigh:
References
- 1. Moore KL, Agur AMR, Dalley AF. Clinically oriented anatomy. LWW. ISBN:1451119453. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 2. Last's anatomy, regional and applied. Churchill Livingstone. ISBN:044304662X. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 3. Butler P, Mitchell A, Healy JC. Applied Radiological Anatomy. Cambridge University Press. (2012) ISBN:0521766664. Read it at Google Books - Find it at Amazon
- 4. Hapugoda S, Hsu CC, Kwan GN, Watkins TW, Rophael JA. Duplication of the superficial femoral artery: comprehensive review of imaging literature and insight into embryology. Acta radiologica open. 5 (7): 2058460116659098. doi:10.1177/2058460116659098 - Pubmed
- 5. Tsoucalas G, Panagouli E, Fiska A, Troupis T, Venieratos D. A rare double profunda femoris artery in a female cadaver. (2018) Anatomy & cell biology. 51 (3): 212-214. doi:10.5115/acb.2018.51.3.212 - Pubmed
Incoming Links
- Vastus medialis muscle
- Medical abbreviations and acronyms (P)
- Adductor longus muscle
- Adductor magnus muscle
- Proximal femoral fractures
- Anterior compartment of the thigh
- Medial circumflex femoral artery
- Persistent sciatic artery
- Inferior epigastric artery
- Deep femoral vein
- Femoral artery
- Arterial supply of the lower limb
- Profunda femoris branches (mnemonic)
- Lateral circumflex femoral artery
- Vastus intermedius muscle
- Iliac artery endofibrosis
- Vastus lateralis muscle
- Adductor brevis muscle
- Medial compartment of the thigh
- Corona mortis
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