The lateral rotator group is a group of six small
muscles of the hip which all
externally (laterally) rotate the
femur
The femur (; : femurs or femora ), or thigh bone is the only long bone, bone in the thigh — the region of the lower limb between the hip and the knee. In many quadrupeds, four-legged animals the femur is the upper bone of the hindleg.
The Femo ...
in the
hip joint
In vertebrate anatomy, the hip, or coxaLatin ''coxa'' was used by Celsus in the sense "hip", but by Pliny the Elder in the sense "hip bone" (Diab, p 77) (: ''coxae'') in medical terminology, refers to either an anatomical region or a joint o ...
. It consists of the following muscles:
piriformis,
gemellus superior,
obturator internus
The internal obturator muscle or obturator internus muscle originates on the medial surface of the obturator membrane, the ischium near the membrane, and the rim of the pubis (bone), pubis.
It exits the pelvis, pelvic cavity through the lesser sc ...
,
gemellus inferior,
quadratus femoris and the
obturator externus
The external obturator muscle or obturator externus muscle (; OE) is a flat, triangular muscle, which covers the outer surface of the anterior wall of the pelvis.
It is sometimes considered part of the medial compartment of thigh, and sometime ...
.
All muscles in the lateral rotator group
originate from the
hip bone
The hip bone (os coxae, innominate bone, pelvic bone or coxal bone) is a large flat bone, constricted in the center and expanded above and below. In some vertebrates (including humans before puberty) it is composed of three parts: the Ilium (bone) ...
and
insert on to the
upper extremity of the femur. The muscles are innervated by the
sacral plexus (
L4-
S2), except the
obturator externus muscle
The external obturator muscle or obturator externus muscle (; OE) is a flat, triangular muscle, which covers the outer surface of the anterior wall of the pelvis.
It is sometimes considered part of the medial compartment of thigh, and sometime ...
, which is innervated by the
lumbar plexus
The lumbar plexus is a web of nerves (a nerve plexus) in the lumbar region of the body which forms part of the larger lumbosacral plexus. It is formed by the divisions of the first four lumbar nerves (L1–L4) and from contributions of the su ...
.
Individual muscles
Other lateral rotators
This group does not include all muscles which aid in lateral rotation of the hip joint: rather it is a collection of ones which are known for primarily performing this action. Other muscles that contribute to lateral rotation of the hip include:
*
Gluteus maximus muscle (lower fibres)
*
Gluteus medius muscle and
gluteus minimus muscle when the hip is flexed (become medial rotators when hip is extended)
*
Psoas major muscle
The psoas major ( or ; from ) is a long fusiform muscle located in the lateral lumbar region between the vertebral column and the brim of the lesser pelvis. It joins the iliacus muscle to form the iliopsoas. In other animals, this muscle is equ ...
*
Psoas minor muscle
The psoas minor muscle ( or ; from ) is a long, slender skeletal muscle. When present, it is located anterior to the psoas major muscle.Tank (2005), p 93Gray (2008), p 1372
Structure
The psoas minor muscle originates from the vertical fascicle ...
*
Sartorius muscle
The sartorius muscle () is the longest muscle in the human body. It is a long, thin, superficial muscle that runs down the length of the thigh in the anterior compartment.
Structure
The sartorius muscle originates from the anterior superior ilia ...
Additional images
file:Superior gemellus.jpg, Dissection
Dissection (from Latin ' "to cut to pieces"; also called anatomization) is the dismembering of the body of a deceased animal or plant to study its anatomical structure. Autopsy is used in pathology and forensic medicine to determine the cause of ...
of lateral rotator group (obturator externus
The external obturator muscle or obturator externus muscle (; OE) is a flat, triangular muscle, which covers the outer surface of the anterior wall of the pelvis.
It is sometimes considered part of the medial compartment of thigh, and sometime ...
hidden under quadratus femoris muscle) seen from the back
file:Slide1BIBI.JPG, Muscles of thigh
In anatomy, the thigh is the area between the hip (pelvis) and the knee. Anatomically, it is part of the lower limb.
The single bone in the thigh is called the femur. This bone is very thick and strong (due to the high proportion of bone tissu ...
as seen from the front
file:Slide8A.JPG, Cross section of pelvic
The pelvis (: pelves or pelvises) is the lower part of an anatomical trunk, between the abdomen and the thighs (sometimes also called pelvic region), together with its embedded skeleton (sometimes also called bony pelvis or pelvic skeleton).
...
region
See also
*
Hip anatomy
References
External links
*
{{Muscles of lower limb
Hip lateral rotators
Muscles of the lower limb
Hip muscles
Deep lateral rotators of the hip