268 INFERIOR EXTREMITY 



third of the leg, where the muscles give place to their tendons, 

 the artery comes nearer to the surface. In this part of its 

 course it rests upon the tibia and is overlapped on the lateral 

 side by the extensor hallucis longus. Immediately proximal 

 to the ankle-joint the tendon of that muscle crosses the artery 

 and comes to lie on its medial side. 



Two vena comites closely accompany the anterior tibial 

 artery, and send short communicating branches both anterior 

 and posterior to it. The deep peroneal nerve is also intimately 

 related to it. It joins the artery a short distance below the 

 knee and soon takes up a position anterior to the vessel. 

 Near the ankle-joint the nerve, as a rule, assumes a place on 

 the lateral side of the artery. 



On the front of the leg the anterior tibial artery gives off 

 the following branches : 



1. Muscular. 3. Medial anterior malleolar. 



2. Anterior recurrent tibial. 4. Lateral anterior malleolar. 



The muscular branches are numerous and come off at 

 irregular points along the whole length of the artery. They 

 supply the muscles on the anterior crural region. 



Arteria Recurrens Tibialis Anterior. This small vessel 

 springs from the anterior tibial immediately after it reaches 

 the front of the leg. It turns proximally on the lateral 

 condyle of the tibia in the fibres of the tibialis anterior 

 muscle. Its terminal twigs reach the front of the knee-joint, 

 and anastomose with the inferior genicular branches from 

 the popliteal artery. 



Malleolar Arteries. These arteries take origin immediately 

 above the ankle-joint. The arteria malleolaris anterior lateralis 

 is the larger of the two, and passes laterally under cover of 

 the tendons of the extensor digitorum longus and peronaeus 

 tertius, to reach the lateral surface of the lateral malleolus. 

 It anastomoses with the perforating branch of the peroneal 

 artery and with the tarsal arteries. The arteria malleolaris 

 anterior medialis runs medially under cover of the tendons 

 of the extensor hallucis longus and tibialis anterior. . It 

 inosculates with branches from the posterior tibial artery. 



Arteria Dorsalis Pedis. The dorsal artery of the foot is 

 the continuation of the anterior tibial. It begins in front of 

 the ankle-joint at a point midway between the two malleoli, 

 and it extends forwards, upon the forepart of the talus, the 



