THE FEMORAL ARTERY. 



487 



A general indication of the direction of the femoral artery, over the fore part and 

 inner side of the thigh, is given by a line reaching from a point midway between 

 the anterior superior iliac spine and the symphysis pubis above to the prominent 

 tuberosity on the inner condyle of the femur below, the hip-joint having been first 

 slightly flexed, and the thigh abducted and rotated out. In the first part of its 

 course the artery lies along the middle of the depression known as Scarpa's triangle, 

 between the ilio-psoas muscle on the outer side, and the adductor muscles on the 

 inner side of the limb. In this situation the beating of the artery may be felt, and 

 the circulation through the vessel may be most easily controlled by pressure. At a 

 distance of from three to four inches below Poupart's ligament, the sartorius muscle, 

 which forms the outer boundary of Scarpa's triangle, inclining inwards, comes to lie 

 over the artery, and conceals the vessel in the remainder of its extent. Beneath the 

 sartorius the artery is contained, together with the femoral vein and the internal 



Fig. 388. DISSECTION OP THE RIGHT GROIN, SHOWING THE 



FEMORAL VESSELS AND THEIR SUPERFICIAL BRANCHES. 



(R. Quain.) 



a, integument of abdomen ; I, superficial abdominal 

 fascia ; &', the part descending on the spermatic cord ; 

 c, c, aponeurosis of external oblique muscle ; c' the same 

 near the external abdominal ring ; c", inner pillar of the 

 ring ; d, iliac part of the fascia lata ; d', pubic part ; 

 e, e, femoral sheath laid open, the inner letter is imme- 

 diately over the femoral canal ; e'. sartorius muscle, partially 

 exposed ; 1, femoral artery, having 2, the femoral vein to 

 its inner side ; the septum of the sheath is shown between 

 the two vessels ; 3, internal saphenous vein ; 3', its an- 

 terior branch ; 4, superficial circumflex iliac vein ; 5, 

 superficial epigastric vein ; 6, external pudic vessels ; 

 7 to 8, some of the lower inguinal glands receiving twigs 

 from the vessels ; 9, internal, 10, middle, and 11, external 

 cutaneous nerves. 



saphenous nerve, in an elongated intermuscular 

 space which is called Hunter's canal, and which 

 is bounded externally by the vastus interims 

 muscle, internally and posteriorly by the ad- 

 ductors. 



While passing through Scarpa's space, the 

 femoral artery is covered only by the integu- 

 ment and the iliac portion of the fascia lata, as well as, in its upper part, by the 

 femoral sheath which invests both the artery and the vein. In the rest of its 

 course it is covered by the sartorius muscle, and also by a dense fibrous membrane 

 which stretches across from the tendons of the long and great adductors to the vastus 

 internus muscle, and forms the anterior wall of Hunter's canal. The artery rests at 

 first upon the psoas muscle, by which it is separated from the margin of the pelvis 

 and the capsule of the hip-joint ; next it is placed in front of the pectineus and 

 adductor brevis muscles, the companion vein and deep femoral vessels being inter- 

 posed ; afterwards, it lies upon the long adductor muscle ; and lastly, upon the 

 tendon of the great adductor. In the lower half of its course, it has immediately on 

 its outer side the vastus internus muscle, which intervenes between it and the 

 internal surface of the femur. 



At the groin, the artery, after having passed over the margin of the pelvis, is 

 placed in front of the innermost part of the head of the femur ; and at its lower 

 end, the vessel lies close to the inner side of the shaft of the bone ; but in the inter- 

 vening space, in consequence of the projection of the neck and shaft of the femur 



