1082 DISSECTION OF THE LOWER LIMBS. 



passing behind the femoral vessels. These last may be most easily found if 

 the common femoral artery be previously divided (p. 664). If the accessory 

 obturator nerve is present, it will now be seen passing over the brim of the 

 pelvis to the outer border of the pectineus muscle which it partly supplies 

 (p. 666). The pectinens and adductor longus muscles are then to be 

 divided, and their attachments carefully dissected. The continuation of the 

 profunda femoris artery behind the adductor longus is to be cleaned ; and 

 its four perforating branches, of which the fourth is the continuation of the 

 artery, will be seen piercing the adductor magnus muscle (p. 439). When 

 the pectineus muscle has been reflected, the accessory obturator nerve may 

 be traced to its communication with the main obturator nerve, to the pec- 

 tiueus muscle, and to the hip-joint. The anterior division of the obturator 

 nerve is to be traced down in front of the adductor brevis muscle, and on 

 division of the pectineus muscle its posterior division to the adductor 

 magnus will come into view. The obturator nerve will be observed to 

 supply all the adductor group of muscles (p. 662). The dissector will now 

 trace the internal circumflex artery ; he will find it dividing into two 

 branches, one of which passes inwards in front of the obturator extern us and 

 adductor brevis muscles, while the other is directed backwards to anasto- 

 mose with the sciatic artery, and gives off a branch to the hip-joint which 

 enters it by the notch of the acetabulum (p. 439). The obturator externus 

 muscle is to be cleaned, and the external and internal divisions of the 

 obturator artery are to be laid bare from, among its fibres (pp. 269 

 and 423). 



The adductor magnus muscle is then to be cleaned and examined (p. 277); 

 and after it the conjoined insertion of the psoas and iliacus muscles (p. 271); 

 the vastus externus, vastus internus and crureus muscles, together with the 

 deep fibres of the latter, called subcrureus, which are inserted into the syno- 

 vial membrane of the knee-joint (p. 275). 



4. Hip-joint When this stage of the dissection has been reached, the 

 student may either saw through the femur and leave the hip-joint to a more 

 convenient opportunity, or dissect the joint at this time, and afterward* 

 disarticulate the femur. The latter plan is usually to be preferred. In 

 that case, the attachments of all the muscles which act upon or are related 

 to the hip-joint are to be reviewed, and those which remain uncut are to be 

 severed ; the capsular ligament is to be cleaned ; its thinness or deficiency 

 on the posterior aspect, and the thick accessory or ilio-femoral ligament, 

 strengthening it in front, are to be noted (p. 151). The relation of the 

 head of the femur to the acetabulum in the various positions of the limb and 

 foot are to be observed. The capsule may then be opened, and the cotyloid, 

 transverse, and round ligaments examined, together with the articular 

 surfaces and synovial membrane : the limb may then be removed from the 

 body. 



5. The Back of the Leg. After the separation of the limb from the trunk, 

 and when the divided structures have been cleaned and cut conv* niently 

 short, the student will proceed with the dissection of the calf and back of 

 the leg, by directing an incision down the middle of the limb to the heel, 

 and reflecting the skin to each side. He will trace the external and internal 

 saphenous veins as far as the outer and inner ankle (p. 475) ; accompanying 

 the latter he will find the internal saphenous nerve (p. 666), and along with 

 the former he will find the external saphenous nerve arising from the union 

 of the communicans tibialis and communicans fibularis branches of the 

 internal and external popliteal nerves respectively (p. 677). He will also 



