The lower subscapular nerve, also known as the inferior subscapular nerve, is the third branch of the

posterior cord The posterior cord is a part of the brachial plexus The brachial plexus is a network of nerves (nerve plexus) formed by the anterior rami of the lower four Spinal nerve#Cervical nerves, cervical nerves and first Spinal nerve#Thoracic nerves, thor ...

of the

brachial plexus The brachial plexus is a network of nerves (nerve plexus) formed by the anterior rami of the lower four Spinal nerve#Cervical nerves, cervical nerves and first Spinal nerve#Thoracic nerves, thoracic nerve (cervical spinal nerve 5, C5, Cervical spi ...

. It innervates the inferior portion of the

subscapularis muscle The subscapularis is a large triangular muscle which fills the subscapular fossa and inserts into the lesser tubercle of the humerus and the front of the capsule of the shoulder-joint. Structure The subscapularis is covered by a dense fasci ...

and the

teres major muscle The teres major muscle is a muscle of the upper limb. It attaches to the scapula and the humerus and is one of the seven scapulohumeral muscles. It is a thick but somewhat flattened muscle. The teres major muscle (from Latin ''teres'', meanin ...

Structure

The lower subscapular nerve contains

axons An axon (from Greek ἄξων ''áxōn'', axis) or nerve fiber (or nerve fibre: see spelling differences) is a long, slender projection of a nerve cell, or neuron, in vertebrates, that typically conducts electrical impulses known as action pot ...

from the ventral rami of the C5 and C6 cervical

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 ...

. It is the third branch of the

of the

. It gives branches to 2 muscles: *

. It usually gives 4 branches to innervate the subscapularis, and can give up to 8 branches. *

Function

The lower subscapular nerve innervates the

and the

. These muscles medially rotate and

adduct In chemistry, an adduct (; alternatively, a contraction of "addition product") is a product of a direct addition of two or more distinct molecules, resulting in a single reaction product containing all atoms of all components. The resultant is ...

the

humerus The humerus (; : humeri) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius (bone), radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extrem ...

Additional images

File:Brachial plexus.svg, Brachial plexus File:Gray809.png, The right brachial plexus (infraclavicular portion) in the axillary fossa; viewed from below and in front. File:Brachial_plexus_color.svg, Brachial plexus with courses of spinal nerves shown

References

Nerves of the upper limb {{Portal bar, Anatomy