open access
Bilateral accessory head of the adductor longus muscle: an anatomical case study
- Department of Anatomy, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland
- Department of Histology, Cytophysiology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine in Zabrze, University of Technology in Katowice, Zabrze, Poland
open access
Abstract
The adductor longus muscle, with its proximal origin at the pubic bone and distal at the linea aspera, is reported to be one of the most frequently injured groin muscles in contact sports, namely football or ice hockey. Notwithstanding, there is a scarcity of published works regarding the accessory heads of the adductor longus muscle in the existing literature, let alone the clinical significance of the said variant.
The following study is a case report describing bilateral accessory heads of the adductor longus muscle in a 97-year-old female cadaver. A routine cadaveric dissection revealed two accessory heads on the right thigh and one on the left thigh of a donor with no known structural or pathological abnormalities of the proximal lower extremity. The anterior division of the obturator nerve provided nerve supply to the variants on both sides. The deep femoral, superficial external pudendal, femoral vessels were responsible for the vascular supply to the accessory heads of the adductor longus.
Undoubtedly, extensive knowledge regarding the variant anatomy of the hip adductor muscles is of immense importance to physiotherapists and orthopaedists treating patients for their injury or complete tears. Nonetheless, there is little information regarding the accessory heads of the adductor longus in the existing literature (originating mostly from cadaveric studies) that requires further evaluation in vivo to assess whether this variant might have an impact on a patient’s everyday life.
Abstract
The adductor longus muscle, with its proximal origin at the pubic bone and distal at the linea aspera, is reported to be one of the most frequently injured groin muscles in contact sports, namely football or ice hockey. Notwithstanding, there is a scarcity of published works regarding the accessory heads of the adductor longus muscle in the existing literature, let alone the clinical significance of the said variant.
The following study is a case report describing bilateral accessory heads of the adductor longus muscle in a 97-year-old female cadaver. A routine cadaveric dissection revealed two accessory heads on the right thigh and one on the left thigh of a donor with no known structural or pathological abnormalities of the proximal lower extremity. The anterior division of the obturator nerve provided nerve supply to the variants on both sides. The deep femoral, superficial external pudendal, femoral vessels were responsible for the vascular supply to the accessory heads of the adductor longus.
Undoubtedly, extensive knowledge regarding the variant anatomy of the hip adductor muscles is of immense importance to physiotherapists and orthopaedists treating patients for their injury or complete tears. Nonetheless, there is little information regarding the accessory heads of the adductor longus in the existing literature (originating mostly from cadaveric studies) that requires further evaluation in vivo to assess whether this variant might have an impact on a patient’s everyday life.
Keywords
adductor longus, anatomical variation, anatomy, orthopaedics, physiotherapy
Title
Bilateral accessory head of the adductor longus muscle: an anatomical case study
Journal
Issue
Article type
Case report
Pages
416-421
Published online
2022-02-17
Page views
2439
Article views/downloads
969
DOI
Pubmed
Bibliographic record
Folia Morphol 2023;82(2):416-421.
Keywords
adductor longus
anatomical variation
anatomy
orthopaedics
physiotherapy
Authors
T. Kozioł
M. P. Zarzecki
W. Przybycień
W. Twardokęs
J. A. Walocha
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