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Anatomic characterization of the tibial and fibular nutrient arteries in humans

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Abstract

The location of nutrient foramina has been extensively studied in long bones; however, accurate information on the origin and extra-osseous course of the nutrient artery remains clearly defined in some long bones, although it is crucial to protect the nutrient arteries during operative procedures. In this study, we elucidated the origin and extra-osseous course of tibial and fibular nutrient arteries based on the 54 cadaveric legs. The tibial nutrient artery typically arose from the posterior tibial artery. Some of the tibial nutrient arteries arose from the anterior tibial, popliteal, and fibular arteries. The tibial nutrient artery arose from these parent arteries as a long descending branch. It penetrated the most proximal portion of the tibialis posterior or flexor digitorum longus to enter the tibial nutrient foramen. The fibular nutrient artery arose from the fibular artery as a short descending branch in all the cases. The fibular nutrient artery penetrated the flexor hallucis longus to enter the fibular nutrient foramen. Our present and previous findings provide new insight into the anatomical characteristics for the nutrient arteries in the long bones of upper and lower extremities. Namely, the nutrient arteries of the long bones go away from the elbow or knee to enter the nutrient foramina.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Mr. Naoaki Kimura, Mr. Sora Kawamura, and Mr. Hironori Matsuda for their technical assistance. The authors also gratefully acknowledge the individuals who donated their bodies to Juntendo University. This article was made possible by the selfless gift from cadaver donors. This study was supported by an institutional fund from Juntendo University.

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Author notes

  1. Hidaka Anetai and Shota Kinose have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anatomy and Life Structure, Graduate School of Medicine, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-Ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, Japan

    Hidaka Anetai, Shota Kinose, Riku Sakamoto, Rumiko Onodera, Kota Kato, Yuto Kawasaki, Takayuki Miyaki, Hiroyuki Kudoh, Tatsuo Sakai & Koichiro Ichimura

  2. Department of Rehabilitation, Yamada Memorial Hospital, Tokyo, Japan

    Shota Kinose

  3. Faculty of Health Scienc, Department of Physical Therapy, Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan

    Tatsuo Sakai

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  1. Hidaka Anetai
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  2. Shota Kinose
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  3. Riku Sakamoto
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  4. Rumiko Onodera
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  5. Kota Kato
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  9. Tatsuo Sakai
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  10. Koichiro Ichimura
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Correspondence to Koichiro Ichimura.

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Anetai, H., Kinose, S., Sakamoto, R. et al. Anatomic characterization of the tibial and fibular nutrient arteries in humans. Anat Sci Int 96, 378–385 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12565-020-00600-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12565-020-00600-9

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