| Artery: Femoral artery | |
|---|---|
| Structures passing behind the inguinal ligament. (Femoral artery labeled at upper right.) | |
| Schema of femoral artery (labeled as #20) and its major branches - right thigh, anterior view. | |
| Latin | arteria femoralis |
| Gray's | subject #157 623 |
| Supplies | anterior compartment of thigh |
| Source | external iliac artery |
| Branches | Superficial epigastric artery Superficial iliac circumflex Superficial external pudendal Deep external pudendal Deep femoral artery |
| Vein | femoral vein |
| MeSH | Femoral+Artery |
The femoral artery is a general term comprising a few large arteries in the thigh. They begin at the inguinal ligament (femoral head) and end just above the knee at adductor canal or Hunter's canal traversing the extent of the femur bone.
The femoral artery is divided into three parts: The common femoral artery which divides into the deep femoral artery (a.k.a. Profunda), which provides blood to the thigh, and the superficial femoral artery, which provides blood to the arteries that circulate the knee and foot.
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The femoral arteries receive blood through the external iliac artery. This connection occurs at the femoral triangle behind the inguinal ligament, which is usually near the head of the femur bone. That proximal section of the femoral artery, known specifically as the common femoral artery (CFA), leaves the femoral triangle through an apex beneath the sartorius muscle. It then divides into a deep femoral artery, more commonly known as the Profunda, which provides blood to the thigh, and the superficial femoral artery or SFA, which connects to the popliteal artery at the opening of adductor magnus or hunter's canal towards the end of the femur.
The branches of femoral arteries are (from proximal to distal) the superficial and deep external pudendal, superficial epigastric, superficial circumflex iliac, profunda femoris and descending genicular arteries.
As the Common femoral artery (CFA) can often be palpated through the skin, it is often used as a catheter access artery. From the CFA wires and catheters can be directed anywhere in the arterial system for intervention or diagnostics including the heart, brain, kidneys, arms and legs. The direction of the needle in the CFA can be against blood flow (retro-grade), for intervention and diagnostic towards the heart and opposite leg, or with the flow (ante-grade or ipsi-lateral) for diagnostics and intervention on the same leg. Access in either the left or right CFA is possible and depends on the type of intervention or diagnostic.
The CFA is susceptible to peripheral arterial disease.[1] When a CFA is blocked through atherosclerosis, percutaneous intervention with access from the opposite CFA may be needed. Endarterectomy, a surgical cut down and removal of the plaque, of the CFA is also common.
The CFA can be used to draw arterial blood when the blood pressure is so low that the radial or brachial arteries cannot be located.
The site for optimally palpating the femoral pulse is in the inner thigh, at the mid-inguinal point, halfway between the pubic symphysis and anterior superior iliac spine. Presence of a femoral pulse has been estimated to indicate a systolic blood pressure of more than 50 mmHg, as given by the 50% percentile.[2]
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