Question

Steve is a member of the West Coast Eagles football team. During practice, he suffered a high impact collided with a team-mate and injured the anterior compartment of his thigh. As a result of the collision, his quadriceps femoris muscle were compressed against the femur, resulting in quadriceps contusion or ‘cork thigh’.

Describe the gross anatomy of the [muscles, their attachments and actions and nerve supply] of the quadriceps [anterior] compartment of the thigh?

Answer 1

	origin	insertion	innervation	action	blood supply
rectus femoris	Anterior inferior iliac spine and and ilium superior to acetabulum.	base of patella to tibial tuberosity via patellar ligament	femoral nerve	Extends leg at knee joint and flexes thigh at hip joint	lateral circumflex femoral and profunda femoris areteries
vastus intermedius	Anterior and lateral surface of the body of the femur	base of patella to tibial tuberosity via patellar ligament	femoral nerve	Extends leg at knee joint	lateral circumflex femoral and profunda femoris areteries
vastus lateralis	greater trochanter and lateral lip of linea aspera of femur	base of patella to tibial tuberosity via patellar ligament	femoral nerve	Extends leg at knee joint	lateral circumflex femoral and profunda femoris areteries
vastus medialis	intertrochanteric line and medial lip of linea aspera of femur	base of patella to tibial tuberosity via patellar ligament	femoral nerve	Extends leg at knee joint	femoral and profunda femoris areteries