The common fibular nerve (also known as the common peroneal nerve, external popliteal nerve, or lateral popliteal nerve) is a nerve in the lower leg that provides sensation over the posterolateral part of the leg and the knee joint. It divides at the knee into two terminal branches: the

superficial fibular nerve The superficial fibular nerve (also known as superficial peroneal nerve) is a mixed (motor and sensory) nerve that provides motor innervation to the fibularis longus and fibularis brevis muscles, and sensory innervation to skin over the antero- ...

and

deep fibular nerve The deep fibular nerve (also known as deep peroneal nerve) begins at the bifurcation of the common fibular nerve between the fibula and upper part of the fibularis longus, passes infero-medially, deep to the extensor digitorum longus, to the a ...

, which innervate the muscles of the lateral and anterior compartments of the leg respectively. When the common fibular nerve is damaged or compressed, foot drop can ensue.

Structure

The common fibular nerve is the smaller terminal branch of the sciatic nerve. The common fibular nerve has root values of L4, L5, S1, and S2. It arises from the superior angle of the

popliteal fossa The popliteal fossa (also referred to as hough or kneepit in analogy to the cubital fossa) is a shallow depression located at the back of the knee joint. The bones of the popliteal fossa are the femur and the tibia. Like other flexion surfaces ...

and extends to the lateral angle of the popliteal fossa, along the medial border of the

biceps femoris The biceps femoris () is a muscle of the thigh located to the posterior, or back. As its name implies, it consists of two heads; the long head is considered part of the hamstring muscle group, while the short head is sometimes excluded from this ...

. It then winds around the neck of the fibula to pierce the fibularis longus and divides into terminal branches of the

and the

. Before its division, the common fibular nerve gives off several branches in the popliteal fossa.

Cutaneous branches

* Lateral sural cutaneous nerve (lateral cutaneous nerve of calf) - supplies the skin of the upper two-thirds of the lateral side of leg. * sural communicating nerve - it runs on the posterolateral aspect of the calf and joins the

sural nerve The sural nerve ''(L4-S1)'' is generally considered a pure cutaneous nerve of the posterolateral leg to the lateral ankle. The sural nerve originates from a combination of either the sural communicating branch and medial sural cutaneous nerve, ...

Articular branches

* Superior lateral genicular nerve - accompanies artery of the same name and lies above the lateral femoral condyle. * Inferior lateral genicular nerve - accompanies artery of the same name and lies just above the head of the

fibula The fibula (: fibulae or fibulas) or calf bone is a leg bone on the lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long bones. ...

. * Recurrent genicular nerve - It arises from the point of division of the common fibular nerve; then ascends anterior to the knee joint together with the anterior recurrent tibial artery to supply the knee joint and the tibialis anterior muscle.

Motor branches

There is only one motor branch that arises directly from the common fibular nerve, the nerve to the short head of the biceps femoris muscle.

Function

The common fibular nerve innervates the short head of the

muscle via a motor branch that exits close to the gluteal cleft. The remainder of the fibular-innervated muscles are innervated by its branches, the

and

. It provides sensory innervation to the skin over the upper third of the lateral aspect of the leg via the lateral sural cutaneous nerve. It gives the sural communicating nerve which joins the

in the midcalf.

Clinical significance

Chronic fibular (peroneal) neuropathy can result from, among other conditions, bed rest of long duration, hyperflexion of the knee, peripheral neuropathy, pressure in obstetric stirrups, and conditioning in ballet dancers. The most common cause is habitual leg crossing that compresses the common fibular nerve as it crosses around the neck of the fibula. Transient trauma to the nerve can result from peroneal strike, a fighting move aimed at the target's knee which causes a temporary disabling of the nerve. Damage to this nerve typically results in foot drop, where dorsiflexion of the foot is compromised and the foot drags (the toe points) during walking; and in sensory loss to the dorsal surface of the foot and portions of the anterior, lower-lateral leg. A common

yoga Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as pra ...

kneeling exercise, the Vajrasana, has been linked to a variant called yoga foot drop. Surgical procedures involving the nerve involve: * fibular (peroneal) nerve decompression ** To surgically decompress the common fibular nerve, an incision is made over the neck of the fibula. Fascia surrounding the nerves to the lateral side of the leg is released. * Deep fibular (peroneal) nerve decompression ** In the surgical treatment of deep fibular nerve entrapment in the foot, a ligament from the extensor digitorum brevis muscle that crosses over the deep fibular nerve, putting pressure on it and causing pain, is released.

Additional images

File:Gray826and831.svg, Front and posterior views of cutaneous nerves of the right lower extremity File:Tibial and fibular nerve.jpg, Common fibular (peroneal) nerve File:Slide3i.JPG, Common fibular (peroneal) nerve File:Slide5j.JPG, Common fibular (peroneal) nerve

References

External links

* * * *
arteries-nerves%20LE/nerves4
at the Dartmouth Medical School's Department of Anatomy
Overview at okstate.edu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Common Fibular Nerve Nerves of the lower limb and lower torso