Sartorius muscle

The sartorius muscle originates from the anterior superior iliac spine, and part of the notch between the anterior superior iliac spine and anterior inferior iliac spine. It runs obliquely across the upper and anterior part of the thigh in an inferomedial direction. ==Function==

The sartorius muscle can move the hip joint and the knee joint, but all of its actions are weak, making it a synergist muscle. At the hip, it can flex, weakly abduct, and laterally rotate the femur. At the knee, it can flex the leg; when the knee is flexed, sartorius medially rotates the leg. Sitting cross-legged demonstrates all four actions of the sartorius. ==Clinical significance==

One of the many conditions that can disrupt the use of the sartorius is pes anserine bursitis, an inflammatory condition of the medial portion of the knee. This condition usually occurs in athletes from overuse and is characterized by pain, swelling and tenderness. The pes anserinus involves the tendons of the gracilis, semitendinosus, and sartorius muscles; these tendons attach onto the anteromedial proximal tibia. When inflammation of the bursae underlying the tendons occurs, they separate from the head of the tibia. == History ==

The name sartorius comes from the Latin word sartor, meaning tailor, and it is sometimes called the tailor's muscle. This name is likely in reference to the cross-legged position in which tailors once sat. Similarly in French, an older name for this muscle is "couturier" (seamstress or dressmaker), with similar reference to "sitting as a tailor" (in French: "s'asseoir en tailleur"). There are other hypotheses as to the origin of the name. One is that it refers to the location of the inferior portion of the muscle being the "inseam" or area of the inner thigh that tailors commonly measure when fitting trousers. Another is that the muscle closely resembles a tailor's ribbon. Additionally, antique sewing machines required continuous crossbody pedaling. This combination of lateral rotation and flexion of the hip and flexion of the knee gave tailors particularly developed sartorius muscles. ==Additional images==

File:Gray430.png|Muscles of the iliac and anterior femoral regions. File:Thigh cross section.svg|Cross-section through the middle of the thigh. File:Gray549.png|The left femoral triangle. File:Gray1238.png|Front and medial aspect of right thigh. File:Anatomical dissection4.JPG File:Slide1rrr.JPG|Sartorius muscle File:Slide1www.JPG|Sartorius muscle File:Slide2A.JPG|Sartorius muscle File:Slide2CCCC.JPG|Sartorius muscle File:Slide7GGGGG.JPG|Sartorius muscle File:Slide8NNNNN.JPG|Sartorius muscle File:Slide2EA.JPG|Muscles of thigh. Cross section. == References ==