162 



DISSECTION OF THE THIGH. 



is inserted 

 into tibia ; 



position to 

 other 

 muscles ; 



use on knee- 

 joint and 

 femur ; 



Pectineus : 



origin from 

 pubis ; 



inserted 

 into femur ; 



relations 

 of surfaces, 



and borders; 



use on 

 femur, free 



and fixed. 



Adductor 

 longus ex- 

 tends from 

 pelvis to 

 femur ; 



relations to 

 muscles and 



vessels ; 



muscle arises by a thin aponeurosis, two or three inches in depth, 

 from the pubic border of the hip-bone close to the margin, viz., 

 opposite the lower half of the symphysis, and the upper part of the 

 pubic arch (fig. 47, p. 113). Inferiorly it is inserted by a flat tendon, 

 about one-third of an inch wide, into the inner surface of the tibia, 

 beneath and close to the sartorius (fig. 68, p. 179). 



The muscle is superficial throughout. For two-thirds of the 

 thigh it is flattened against the adductors brevis and magnus, so as 

 to have its borders directed forwards and backwards ; and in the 

 lower third it intervenes between the sartorius and semimem- 

 braiiosus muscles, and helps to form the inner boundary of the 

 popliteal space. At its insertion the tendon is nearer the knee 

 than that of the semitendinosus, though at the same depth from the 

 surface, and both lie over the internal lateral ligament ; from the 

 tendon an expansion is continued to the fascia of the leg, like the 

 sartorius. A bursa separates the tendon from the internal lateral 

 ligament, and projects above it under the sartorius. 



Action. It bends the knee-joint if the tibia is not fixed, rotating 

 inwards that bone, and then brings the movable femur towards 

 the middle line with the other adductors. 



Supposing the foot resting on the ground, the gracilis will aid in 

 staying the pelvis on the limb. 



The PECTINEUS (fig. 58, P, p. 151) is the highest of the muscles 

 directed from the pelvis to the inner side of the femur. It has a 

 fleshy origin from the pubic portion of the ilio-pectineal line, and 

 slightly from the surface in front of that line (fig. 47) ; and it is 

 inserted by a thin tendon, about two inches in width, into the femur 

 behind the small trochanter, and into the upper part of the line 

 which extends from that process to the linea aspera (fig. 61, 

 p. 158). 



One surface of the muscle is in contact with the fascia lata ; and 

 the femoral vessels lie over its lower part : the opposite surface 

 touches the obturator externus and adductor brevis muscles, and the 

 superficial portion of the obturator nerve. The pectineus lies 

 between the psoas and the adductor longus ; and the internal 

 circumflex vessels pass between its outer border and the psoas. 



Action. It adducts the limb and bends the hip-joint. When 

 the femur is fixed it can support the pelvis in standing ; or it can 

 draw forwards the pelvis in stooping. 



The ADDUCTOR LONGUS lies below the pectineus (fig. 58, G), and 

 is triangular in form, with the apex at the pelvis and the base at 

 the femur. It arises by a narrow tendon from the front of the 

 pubis in the angle between the crest and the symphysis (fig. 47) ; 

 and it is inserted into the inner edge of the linea aspera, blending 

 with the insertion of the subjacent adductors (fig. 61). 



This muscle is situate between the gracilis and the pectineus, and 

 forms part of the floor of Scarpa's triangle. Its anterior surface is 

 covered near the femur by the femoral vessels and the sartorius ; 

 the posterior rests on the other two adductors, on the superficial 

 part of the obturator nerve, and on the deep femoral artery. The 



