The Vascular Supply to the Lateral Compartment of the Leg with Emphasis on Fibular Graft Harvesting

Abstract

Purpose The aim of this study is to determine the exact locations of vascular pedicles that supply the fibularis longus and brevis, to identify the morphometric features of those vessels in the lateral compartment of the leg, and to indicate the branching points of the pedicles from the main arteries. Methods The popliteal arteries of 40 lower limbs from 20 adult cadavers (12 males, eight females) were injected with colored latex bilaterally. Following dissection, the branches were counted, and the distances between the apex of the head of the fibula and the branching points of pedicles from the anterior tibial, fibular, and posterior tibial arteries that supply the fibularis longus and brevis were measured. Results In all cases, a single artery coursing in the lateral compartment of the leg was identified; it was a branch of the anterior tibial artery and it supplied the proximal and middle thirds of the fibular muscles anteriorly. The mean distance between the origin of this artery and the apex of the fibular head was 8.65 cm. Its mean length was 10.9 cm and the mean number of its branches was 4.7. In all specimens, the fibular artery supplied the proximal and distal portions of the fibular muscles posteriorly. Conclusions In this study, the morphometric properties and branching patterns of the axial pedicle of ATA, which runs longitudinally in the lateral compartment and branches to the FL and FB, are described in detail for the first time. We propose that this artery be named the lateral fibular artery. If this nomenclature is accepted, the fibular artery can be renamed the posterior fibular artery.