| Pectineus | |
|---|---|
 The pectineus and nearby muscles | |
 Structures passing behind the inguinal ligament (pectineus visible at bottom right.) | |
| Details | |
| Origin | Pectineal line of the pubic bone |
| Insertion | Pectineal line of the femur |
| Artery | Obturator artery |
| Nerve | Femoral nerve, sometimes obturator nerve |
| Actions | Thigh - flexion, adduction, external rotation |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | musculus pectineus |
| TA98 | A04.7.02.025 |
| TA2 | 2627 |
| FMA | 22440 |
| Anatomical terms of muscle | |
The pectineus muscle (/pɛkˈtɪniəs/, from the Latin word pecten, meaning comb)[1] is a flat, quadrangular muscle, situated at the anterior (front) part of the upper and medial (inner) aspect of the thigh. The pectineus muscle is the most anterior adductor of the hip. The muscle's primary action is hip flexion; it also produces adduction and internal rotation of the hip.
It can be classified in the medial compartment of thigh[2] (when the function is emphasized) or the anterior compartment of thigh (when the nerve is emphasized).[3]
- ^ Mosby's Medical, Nursing & Allied Health Dictionary, Fourth Edition, Mosby-Year Book Inc., 1994, p. 1177
- ^ Ellis, Harold; Susan Standring; Gray, Henry David (2005). Gray's anatomy: the anatomical basis of clinical practice. St. Louis, Mo: Elsevier Churchill Livingstone. p. 518. ISBN 0-443-07168-3.
- ^ medialthigh at The Anatomy Lesson by Wesley Norman (Georgetown University)