Femoral triangle

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Femoral triangle

Drawing of the left femoral triangle - shows superior portion of the femoral vein.

Right femoral sheath laid open to show its three compartments
Latin	trigonum femoris
Gray's	subject #157 626
Dorlands/Elsevier	t_19/12823448

The femoral triangle (of Scarpa) is an anatomical region of the upper inner human thigh, bounded by:

It is important as a number of vital structures pass through it, right under the skin - most notably, the femoral nerve, the femoral artery and the femoral vein (from lateral to medial).

Since the femoral triangle provides easy access to a major artery, coronary angioplasty is often performed by entering the femoral artery at the femoral triangle. In first aid, heavy bleeding in the leg can be stopped by applying pressure to points in the femoral triangle.

[edit] Mnemonics

Several mnemonics have been created to remember the order of the nerve, artery, and vein in this triangle:

lateral to medial - "NAVY": nerve, artery, vein, Y-fronts. (Y-fronts are a brand of underwear.)
lateral to medial - "NAVEL" nerve, artery, vein, empty space, lymphatics.
medial to lateral - "VAN": vein, artery, nerve. These three structures are found in the same order in the intercostal space, from top to bottom.
the phrase "venous near the penis" can be used to remember that the vein is more medial than the artery or nerve.