The popliteus muscle in the leg is used for unlocking the

knees In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the hu ...

when walking, by laterally rotating the

femur The femur (; ), or thigh bone, is the proximal bone of the hindlimb in tetrapod vertebrates. The head of the femur articulates with the acetabulum in the pelvic bone forming the hip joint, while the distal part of the femur articulates with ...

on the

tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it connects ...

during the closed chain portion of the gait cycle (one with the foot in contact with the ground). In open chain movements (when the involved limb is not in contact with the ground), the popliteus muscle medially rotates the tibia on the femur. It is also used when sitting down and standing up. It is the only muscle in the posterior (back) compartment of the lower leg that acts just on the knee and not on the

ankle The ankle, or the talocrural region, or the jumping bone (informal) is the area where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle includes three joints: the ankle joint proper or talocrural joint, the subtalar joint, and the inferior tibiofibular join ...

. The

gastrocnemius muscle The gastrocnemius muscle (plural ''gastrocnemii'') is a superficial two-headed muscle that is in the back part of the lower leg of humans. It runs from its two heads just above the knee to the heel, a three joint muscle (knee, ankle and subtala ...

acts on both

joint A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw ...

Structure

The popliteus muscle originates from the lateral surface of the lateral condyle of the femur by a rounded tendon. Its fibers pass downward and medially. It inserts onto the posterior surface of

, above the

soleal line The soleal line, also known as the popliteal line (in older texts), is a prominent ridge on the posterior surface of the tibia. It is the site of many muscle origins and insertions, such as those of popliteus muscle, soleus muscle, flexor digitor ...

. The popliteus tendon runs beneath the lateral collateral ligament and tendon of

biceps femoris The biceps femoris () is a muscle of the thigh located to the posterior, or back. As its name implies, it has two parts, one of which (the long head) forms part of the hamstrings muscle group. Structure It has two heads of origin: *the ''long h ...

. The muscle also runs above the

lateral meniscus The lateral meniscus (external semilunar fibrocartilage) is a fibrocartilaginous band that spans the lateral side of the interior of the knee joint. It is one of two meniscus (anatomy), menisci of the knee, the other being the medial meniscus. It ...

but has no connection with the meniscus in 45% of the cases, but has strong connection with it in 17.5% of the cases. Therefore, popliteus muscle is extrasynovial, extra-articular, and intracapsular.

Nerve supply

The popliteus muscle is supplied by the

tibial nerve The tibial nerve is a branch of the sciatic nerve. The tibial nerve passes through the popliteal fossa to pass below the arch of soleus. Structure Popliteal fossa The tibial nerve is the larger terminal branch of the sciatic nerve with root val ...

, from spinal roots L5 and S1.

Variation

There is sometimes an additional head from the

sesamoid bone In anatomy, a sesamoid bone () is a bone embedded within a tendon or a muscle. Its name is derived from the Arabic word for ' sesame seed', indicating the small size of most sesamoids. Often, these bones form in response to strain, or can be pres ...

in the lateral (outer) head of the

. Rarely an additional inconstant muscle; the

popliteus minor The popliteus muscle in the leg is used for unlocking the knees when walking, by laterally rotating the femur on the tibia during the closed chain portion of the gait cycle (one with the foot in contact with the ground). In open chain movements ...

is seen. It originates from the femur on the inner side of the

plantaris muscle The plantaris is one of the superficial muscles of the superficial posterior compartment of the leg, one of the fascial compartments of the leg. It is composed of a thin muscle belly and a long thin tendon. While not as thick as the achilles te ...

and inserts into the posterior ligament of the knee-joint. Peroneotibialis, 14% of population. Origin is inner side of the head of the fibula, insertion into the upper end of the oblique line of the tibia, it lies beneath the popliteus. Another variant, the cyamella, is a small sesamoid bone embedded in the tendon of the popliteus muscle. It is rarely seen in humans, with prevalence rates from 0.57–1.8%, but has been described more often in other primates and certain other animals.

Function

The popliteus assists in flexing the leg upon the

thigh In human anatomy, the thigh is the area between the hip (pelvis) and the knee. Anatomically, it is part of the lower limb. The single bone in the thigh is called the femur. This bone is very thick and strong (due to the high proportion of bone ...

; when the leg is flexed, it will rotate the tibia inward. It is especially called into action at the beginning of the act of bending the knee, in as much as it produces the slight

inward rotation Motion, the process of movement, is described using specific anatomical terms. Motion includes movement of organs, joints, limbs, and specific sections of the body. The terminology used describes this motion according to its direction relative ...

of the tibia, which is essential in the early stage of this movement. When the knee is in full extension, the femur slightly medially rotates on the tibia to lock the knee joint in place. Popliteus is often referred to as the "Key" to unlocking the knee since it begins knee flexion by laterally rotating the femur on the tibia. Popliteus is also attached to the lateral meniscus in the knee and draws it posteriorly during knee flexion to prevent crushing the

meniscus Meniscus may refer to: *Meniscus (anatomy), crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous structure that partly divides a joint cavity *Meniscus (liquid) The meniscus (plural: ''menisci'', from the Greek for "crescent") is the curve in the upper surface ...

between the tibia and femur as the knee flexes.

Additional images

File:Popliteus large.gif, Animation File:Gray439-Musculus popliteus.png, Deep layer of muscles on the back of the right leg File:Sobo 1909 305.png, Muscles of

deep posterior compartment The posterior compartment of the leg is one of the fascial compartments of the leg and is divided further into deep and superficial compartments. Structure Muscles Superficial posterior compartment Deep posterior compartment Blood ...

of the right leg

Surgery

Injury to the Popliteus causes posterolateral rotatory instability of knee. This can be treated with Arthroscopic Popliteus Sling reconstruction using the popliteus portal.

References

External links

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PTCentral
{{Authority control Calf muscles Muscles of the lower limb