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

than the femoral artery. It runs between the pectineus muscle 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 fem ...

. It runs on the posterior side of

. It pierces the adductor magnus muscle, 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 The lateral circumflex femoral artery, also known as the lateral femoral circumflex artery, or the external circumflex artery, is an artery in the upper thigh. It is usually a branch of the profunda femoris artery, and produces three branches. It i ...

. * Medial circumflex femoral artery. * 3 Perforating arteries - perforate the adductor magnus muscle to the posterior and medial

compartment Compartment may refer to: Biology * Compartment (anatomy), a space of connective tissue between muscles * Compartment (chemistry), in which different parts of the same protein serves different functions * Compartment (development), fields of cells ...

s of the thigh to connect with the branches of the popliteal artery behind the knee.

Function

The deep artery of the thigh is the main supply of oxygenated

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the c ...

to the thigh.

Additional images

File:Thigh cross section.svg, Cross-section through the middle of the left thigh. File:Thigh arteries schema.svg, A schema of the arteries of the thigh. File:Slide8LLLLL.JPG, Deep artery of the thigh File:Slide18LLLL.JPG, Deep artery of the thigh File:Slide6NNNNN.JPG, Deep artery of the thigh

References

External links