Pectineus muscle
Musculus pectineus
- Related terms: Pectineus
Definition
The pectineus muscle is a flat, quadrangular muscle located in the anterior part of the upper and medial aspect of the thigh. It originates from the pecten pubis of the pubis and the superior ramus of the pubis and inserts into the pectineal line of the femur, which is located just below the lesser trochanter. The pectineus muscle acts primarily as a hip flexor and adductor.
Origin: Pecten pubis on superior pubic ramus
Insertion: Lesser trochanter, pectineal line on linea aspera
Artery: Obturator artery
Nerve: Femoral nerve, sometimes obturator nerve
Action: Thigh - flexion, adduction, medial rotation
Description: The Pectineus is a flat, quadrangular muscle, situated at the anterior part of the upper and medial aspect of the thigh. It arises from the pectineal line, and to a slight extent from the surface of bone in front of it, between the iliopectineal eminence and tubercle of the pubis, and from the fascia covering the anterior surface of the muscle; the fibers pass downward, backward, and lateralward, to be inserted into a rough line leading from the lesser trochanter to the linea aspera.
References
This definition incorporates text from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy (20th U.S. edition of Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body, published in 1918 – from http://www.bartleby.com/107/).
