The posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh (also called the posterior femoral cutaneous nerve) is a

sensory nerve A sensory nerve, or afferent nerve, is a general anatomic term for a nerve which contains predominantly somatic afferent nerve fibers. Afferent nerve fibers in a sensory nerve carry sensory information toward the central nervous system (CNS) fro ...

in 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 ...

. It supplies the

skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different de ...

of the posterior surface of the

leg A leg is a weight-bearing and locomotive anatomical structure, usually having a columnar shape. During locomotion, legs function as "extensible struts". The combination of movements at all joints can be modeled as a single, linear element ca ...

buttock The buttocks (singular: buttock) are two rounded portions of the exterior anatomy of most mammals, located on the posterior of the pelvic region. In humans, the buttocks are located between the lower back and the perineum. They are compose ...

, and also the

perineum The perineum in humans is the space between the anus and scrotum in the male, or between the anus and the vulva in the female. The perineum is the region of the body between the pubic symphysis (pubic arch) and the coccyx (tail bone), includi ...

Structure

The posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh is a nerve from the

sacral plexus In human anatomy, the sacral plexus is a nerve plexus which provides motor and sensory nerves for the posterior thigh, most of the lower leg and foot, and part of the pelvis. It is part of the lumbosacral plexus and emerges from the lumbar verte ...

. It arises partly from the dorsal divisions of the S1 and S2, and from the ventral divisions of S2 and S3

sacral spinal nerves A spinal nerve is a mixed nerve, which carries motor, sensory, and autonomic signals between the spinal cord and the body. In the human body there are 31 pairs of spinal nerves, one on each side of the vertebral column. These are grouped into the ...

. It leaves the pelvis through the

greater sciatic foramen The greater sciatic foramen is an opening (foramen) in the posterior human pelvis. It is formed by the sacrotuberous and sacrospinous ligaments. The piriformis muscle passes through the foramen and occupies most of its volume. The greater sci ...

below the

piriformis muscle The piriformis muscle () is a flat, pyramidally-shaped muscle in the gluteal region of the lower limbs. It is one of the six muscles in the lateral rotator group. The piriformis muscle has its origin upon the front surface of the sacrum, and ins ...

. It then descends beneath the

gluteus maximus muscle The gluteal muscles, often called glutes are a group of three muscles which make up the gluteal region commonly known as the buttocks: the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and gluteus minimus. The three muscles originate from the ilium and sacr ...

with the

inferior gluteal artery The inferior gluteal artery (sciatic artery), the smaller of the two terminal branches of the anterior trunk of the internal iliac artery, is distributed chiefly to the buttock and back of the thigh. It passes down on the sacral plexus of nerves ...

, and runs down the back of the thigh beneath the fascia lata. It runs over the long head of the

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 ...

to the back of the knee. It then pierces the

deep fascia Deep fascia (or investing fascia) is a fascia, a layer of dense connective tissue that can surround individual muscles and groups of muscles to separate into fascial compartments. This fibrous connective tissue interpenetrates and surrounds the ...

, and accompanies the

small saphenous vein The small saphenous vein (also short saphenous vein or lesser saphenous vein) is a relatively large superficial vein of the posterior leg. Structure The origin of the small saphenous vein, (SSV) is where the dorsal vein from the fifth digit (sma ...

to about the middle of the back of the leg. Its terminal branches communicate with 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, or ...

Branches

Its branches are all cutaneous, and are distributed to the gluteal region, the perineum, and the back of the thigh and leg. * The inferior clunial nerves (or gluteal branches), three or four in number, turn upward around the lower border of the gluteus maximus, and supply the skin covering the lower and lateral part of that muscle. * The perineal branches are distributed to the skin at the upper and medial side of the

. * The main part to the back of the thigh and leg consists of numerous filaments derived from both sides of the nerve, and distributed to the skin covering the back and medial side of the thigh, the

popliteal fossa The popliteal fossa (also referred to as hough, .html" ;"title="/sup>">/sup> 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 ...

, and the upper part of the back of the leg.

Function

The posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh supplies the posterior surface of the

, the

, and the

gluteal region The gluteal muscles, often called glutes are a group of three muscles which make up the gluteal region commonly known as the buttocks: the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and gluteus minimus. The three muscles originate from the ilium and sa ...

, as well as the

Clinical significance

The posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh may be involved in pain in the posterior thigh.

Additional images

File:Gray825and830.PNG, Cutaneous nerves of the right lower extremity. Front and posterior views. File:Gray826and831.PNG, Cutaneous nerves of the right lower extremity. Front and posterior views. File:Sacral plexus schematic.svg, Schematic of sacral plexus. Posterior cutaneous nerve of thigh is labeled at the bottom.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Nerves of the lower limb and lower torso