Henry Gray (1825–1861). Anatomy of the Human Body. 1918.
pages 247
| of the synovial membrane of the knee-joint and a bursa; from the upper part of it the Articularis genu takes origin. The lateral surface includes the portion between the lateral border and the linea aspera; it is continuous above with the corresponding surface of the greater trochanter, below with that of the lateral condyle: from its upper three-fourths the Vastus intermedius takes origin. The medial surface includes the portion between the medial border and the linea aspera; it is continuous above with the lower border of the neck, below with the medial side of the medial condyle: it is covered by the Vastus medialis. |
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FIG. 246– Lower extremity of right femur viewed from below. (See enlarged image) |
The Lower Extremity (distal extremity), (Fig. 246).—The lower extremity, larger than the upper, is somewhat cuboid in form, but its transverse diameter is greater than its antero-posterior; it consists of two oblong eminences known as the condyles. In front, the condyles are but slightly prominent, and are separated from one another by a smooth shallow articular depression called the patellar surface; behind, they project considerably, and the interval between them forms a deep notch, the intercondyloid fossa. The lateral condyle is the more prominent and is the broader both in its antero-posterior and transverse diameters, the medial condyle is the longer and, when the femur is held with its body perpendicular, projects to a lower level. When, however, the femur is in its natural oblique position the lower surfaces of the two condyles lie practically in the same horizontal plane. The condyles are not quite parallel with one another; the long axis of the lateral is almost directly antero-posterior, but that of the medial runs backward and medialward. Their opposed surfaces are small, rough, and concave, and form the walls of the intercondyloid fossa. This fossa is limited above by a ridge, the intercondyloid line, and below by the central part of the posterior margin of the patellar surface. The posterior cruciate ligament of the knee-joint is attached to the lower and front part of the medial wall of the fossa and the anterior cruciate ligament to an impression on the upper and back part of its lateral wall. Each condyle is surmounted by an elevation, the epicondyle. The medial epicondyle is a large convex eminence to which the tibial collateral ligament of the knee-joint is attached. At its upper part is the adductor tubercle, already referred to, and behind it is a rough impression which gives origin to the medial head of the Gastrocnemius. The lateral epicondyle, smaller and less prominent than the medial, gives attachment to the fibular collateral ligament of the knee-joint. Directly below it is a small depression from which a smooth well-marked groove curves obliquely upward and backward to the posterior extremity of the condyle. This groove is separated from the articular surface of the condyle by a prominent lip across which a second, shallower groove runs vertically downward from the depression. In the fresh state these grooves are covered with cartilage. The Popliteus arises from the depression; its tendon lies in the oblique groove when the knee is flexed and in the vertical |