Dr. Ebraheim’s educational animated video describes the Femoral Triangle of the Thigh.
The femoral triangle is a superficial triangular space located on the anterior aspect of the thigh just inferior to the inguinal ligament.
The boundaries of the femoral triangle include:
1-Lateral border: formed by the medial border of the Sartorius muscle.
2-Medial border: formed by the medial border of the adductor longus muscles.
3-Base: formed by the inguinal ligament.
The floor of the triangle is formed by:
1-Iliacus muscle
2-Psoas major muscle
3-Pectineus muscle
4-Adductor longus muscle
The roof of the femoral triangle is covered by skin, superficial fascia and deep fascia.
Content: the femoral triangle contains three important structures: from lateral to medial:
1-Femoral nerve
2-Femoral artery
3-Femoral vein
4-And it contains deep inguinal lymph nodes.
Navigate the femoral triangle from lateral to medial.
The femoral triangle also contains the femoral sheath which is a funnel shaped sleeve of fascia enclosing the upper 4 cm of the femoral vessels. The femoral nerve is the most important nerve within the triangle. However, it is not the only nerve. The femoral nerve lies within the groove between the iliacus and the psoas major muscles.
Two other nerves are located within the femoral triangle:
1-Lateral cutaneous nerve of the thigh: crosses the lateral corner of the triangle and supplies the skin on the lateral part of the thigh.
2-Femoral branch of the genitofemoral nerve: runs in the lateral compartment of the femoral sheath and supplies the majority of the skin over the femoral triangle.
The neurovascular bundle is media to the Sartorius muscle. Therefore, in the anterior approach to the hip, it is always safe to go lateral to the Sartorius muscle to avoid the important structures within the femoral triangle. It is important to remember when performing this approach to avoid the lateral cutaneous nerve of the thigh.
The femoral sheath is a fascial sheath that contains the femoral artery, vein and femoral canal. The anterior portion of the femoral sheath is formed by a downward extension of the fascia transversalis. The posterior portion is formed by the iliac fascia. The femoral sheath is divided into three compartments. The lateral compartment contains the femoral artery. The intermediate compartment contains the femoral vein. The medial compartment is called the femoral canal and contains lymphatic tissue.
The base of the femoral canal is formed by the femoral ring. A femoral hernia occurs when part of the intestine protrudes through a weak femoral ring into the femoral canal.
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