quadriceps femoris

Examples of quadriceps femoris in the following topics:

• Muscles that Cause Movement at the Knee Joint

  • Three sets of muscles (popliteus, quadriceps and hamstrings) allow for movement, balance, and stability at the knee joint.
  • The patella is the attachment point for the quadriceps femoris muscle and is the attached by a ligament to the tibia.
  • This increases the leverage afforded to the quadriceps femoris muscle, thus increasing its efficiency when extending the lower leg.
  • Quadriceps Femoris – The quadriceps femoris is actually composed of four muscles that comprise the front of the thigh: three deep-lying vastus muscles (lateralis, intermedius, and medialis) and the rectus femoris which covers them.
  • The rectus femoris additionally facilitates rotation at the hip.

• Lumbar Plexus

  • It gives motor innervation to iliopsoas, pectineus, sartorius, and quadriceps femoris and sensory innervation to the anterior thigh, posterior lower leg, and hindfoot.

• Overview of Motor Integration

  • The quadriceps muscles contain many thousands of muscle fibers in general, both slow and fast twitch, to produce sufficient force for body movements such as standing, walking, running, and jumping.
  • The rectus femoris muscle is one of the four quadriceps muscles of the human body.

• Patella (The Knee)

  • The patella serves two functions, to protect the knee from physical trauma and to enhance the leverage that the quadriceps tendon can exert on the femur increasing muscle efficiency.
  • The base of the patella faces superiorly and is the attachment point for the quadriceps tendon.

• Patellofemoral Stress Syndrome

  • Quadriceps strengthening is commonly suggested because the quadricep muscles help to stabilize the patella.

• Muscles that Cause Movement at the Hip Joint

  • Quadratus Femoris - The quadratus femoris is a flat, square-shaped muscle (actually composed of four distinct muscles).
  • Biceps Femoris – A similar muscle to the biceps brachii in the upper arm, also double-headed.
  • Two synergistic muscles are associated with the biceps femoris, the semitendinosus, and the semimembranosus.
  • Produced by the lateral rotator group of muscles and the biceps femoris, sartorius, and gluteus medius and minimus.

• Tibia and Fibula (The Leg)

  • Proximally the fibula head articulates with the lateral condyle of the tibia, the biceps femoris attaches to the fibula head.

• Knee Injuries

  • In the knee the quadriceps and patellar tendon can sometimes tear.

• How Skeletal Muscles Are Named

  • The rectus femoris found in the thigh, and responsible for its flexion, is an example of a bipennate muscle.