Quick Facts
Origin: Anterior surface of body of pubis.
Insertion: Middle one third of linea aspera of femur.
Action: Adducts thigh at hip joint.
Innervation: Anterior branch of obturator nerve (L2-L3).
Arterial Supply: Deep femoral and medial circumflex femoral arteries.
Related parts of the anatomy
Origin
The adductor longus muscle originates from the anterior surface of the body of pubis.
Insertion
The fibers of the adductor longus muscle travel inferolaterally and insert, via a broad aponeurosis, onto the middle one third of the linea aspera of the femur.
Key Features & Anatomical Relations
The adductor longus muscle is found in the medial compartment of the thigh. It is a long, flat, triangular skeletal muscle.
It is located:
- anterior to the adductor brevis and adductor magnus muscles and the deep femoral artery;
- posterior to the sartorius and vastus medialis muscles, the femoral artery and the anterior branch of the obturator nerve;
- medial to the pectineus muscle (at its proximal end);
- lateral to the gracilis muscle (at its proximal end).
The adductor longus muscle contributes to the formation of the:
- adductor canal, where the muscle forms its posterior boundary;
- femoral triangle, where the muscle forms its medial boundary.
Actions & Testing
The adductor longus muscle is involved in multiple actions:
- adducts the thigh at the hip joint;
- assists in flexion of the thigh at the hip joint.
The adductor longus muscle cannot be tested in isolation. Therefore, all of the muscles of the medial compartment of the thigh are tested simultaneously by adducting the thigh at the hip joint against resistance while lying in the supine position with the knee extended, during which the muscle can be palpated (Standring, 2016).
List of Clinical Correlates
- Groin strain
References
Standring, S. (2016) Gray's Anatomy: The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice. Gray's Anatomy Series 41st edn.: Elsevier Limited.
