The profunda femoris artery (also known as the deep femoral artery, or the deep artery of the thigh) is a branch of the femoral artery

Femoral artery

The femoral artery is a general term comprising a few large arteries in the thigh. They begin at the inguinal ligament and end just above the knee at adductor canal or Hunter's canal traversing the extent of the femur bone....

 that, as its name suggests, travels more deeply (posteriorly) than the rest of the femoral artery.

Structure

The profunda femoris branches off the femoral artery

Femoral artery

The femoral artery is a general term comprising a few large arteries in the thigh. They begin at the inguinal ligament and end just above the knee at adductor canal or Hunter's canal traversing the extent of the femur bone....

 soon after its origin. It travels down the thigh closer to the femur

Femur

The femur , or thigh bone, is the most proximal bone of the leg in tetrapod vertebrates capable of walking or jumping, such as most land mammals, birds, many reptiles such as lizards, and amphibians such as frogs. In vertebrates with four legs such as dogs and horses, the femur is found only in...

 than the femoral artery, running between the pectineus and the adductor longus, and running on the posterior side of adductor longus. The deep femoral artery does not leave the thigh

Thigh

In humans the thigh is the area between the pelvis and the knee. Anatomically, it is part of the lower limb.The single bone in the thigh is called the femur...

.

Branches

The profunda femoris gives off the following branches:

• Lateral femoral circumflex artery
  Lateral femoral circumflex artery
  The lateral circumflex femoral artery is an artery in the upper thigh.-Structure:...
  
  
• Medial femoral circumflex artery
  Medial femoral circumflex artery
  The medial circumflex femoral artery is an artery in the upper thigh that helps supply blood to the neck of the femur.-Structure:...
  
  
• Perforating arteries
  Perforating arteries
  The perforating arteries, usually three in number, are so named because they perforate the tendon of the Adductor magnus to reach the back of the thigh....
  
   - perforate the adductor magnus muscle to the posterior and medial compartment
  Fascial compartment
  On the human body, the limbs can be divided into segments, such as the arm and the forearm of the upper limb, and the thigh and the leg of the lower limb.If these segments are cut transversely, it is apparent that they are divided into multiple sections...
  
  s of the thigh.

External links

- "Arteries of the lower extremity shown in association with major landmarks."