Origin It is the smaller of the two terminal branches of the anterior trunk of the
internal iliac artery.
Course It passes posterior-ward within parietal pelvic fascia. It travels in between the S1 nerve and S2 (or S2-S3) nerve(s). It descends upon the nerves of the
sacral plexus and the
piriformis muscle, posterior to the
internal pudendal artery. It passes through the inferior part of the
greater sciatic foramen. It exits the pelvis inferior to the piriformis muscle, between
piriformis muscle and
coccygeus muscle. It then descends in the interval between the
greater trochanter of the
femur and tuberosity of the
ischium. It is accompanied by the
sciatic nerve and the
posterior femoral cutaneous nerves, and covered by the
gluteus maximus. It is situated medial to the sciatic nerve. It continues down the back of the thigh, supplying the skin, and anastomosing with branches of the
perforating arteries.
Distribution The inferior gluteal artery provides arterial supply to the
gluteus maximus,
obturator internus,
quadratus femoris, and (the superior parts of) the
hamstring muscles (
semimembranosus,
semitendinosus, and
biceps femoris muscles).
Anastomoses It forms anastomoses with the
superior gluteal artery. It frequently participates in the formation of the
cruciate anastomosis of the thigh. ==Additional images==