The deep artery of the thigh, (profunda femoris artery or deep femoral artery) is a large branch of the

femoral artery The femoral artery is a large artery in the thigh and the main arterial supply to the thigh and leg. The femoral artery gives off the deep femoral artery or profunda femoris artery and descends along the anteromedial part of the thigh in the fe ...

. It travels more deeply (posteriorly) than the rest of the femoral artery.

Structure

The deep artery of the thigh branches off the posterolateral side of the

soon after its origin. It travels down the thigh closer to 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 wit ...

than the

. It runs between the

pectineus muscle The pectineus muscle (, from the Latin word ''pecten'', meaning comb) is a flat, quadrangular muscle, situated at the anterior (front) part of the upper and medial (inner) aspect of the thigh. The pectineus muscle is the most anterior adductor o ...

and the

adductor longus muscle In the human body, the adductor longus is a skeletal muscle located in the thigh. One of the adductor muscles of the hip, its main function is to adduct the thigh and it is innervated by the obturator nerve. It forms the medial wall of the ...

. It runs on the posterior side of

. It pierces the

adductor magnus muscle Adductor may refer to: * One of the anatomical terms of motion 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 terminolog ...

, and may be known as the fourth perforating artery as it continues. The deep femoral artery does not leave 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 ...

Branches

The deep artery of the thigh gives off the following branches: * Lateral circumflex femoral artery. * Medial circumflex femoral artery. * 3

Perforating arteries The perforating arteries, usually three in number, are so named because they perforate the tendon of the Adductor magnus to reach the back of the thigh. They pass backward close to the linea aspera of the femur under cover of small tendinous arche ...

- perforate the

adductor magnus Adductor may refer to: * One of the anatomical terms of motion * Adductor muscle (disambiguation) * Adductor canal {{disambiguation