Third head of biceps brachii in an Indian population

The biceps brachii is one of the muscles of the anterior compartment of the upper arm. It is characteristically described as a two-headed muscle that originates proximally by a long head and a short head. The present study was carried out to find the occurrence of a third head of biceps brachii among a sample Indian population from the southern coastal part.

The arms of 42 cadavers were dissected and observed for variations in the origin and insertion of biceps brachii muscle bilaterally. The cadavers were embalmed and preserved in ten percent formalin.

Among 42 arms studied, three had biceps brachii with three heads on the right side. The third head was of humeral origin, which inserted into the radial tuberosity by a common tendon with the long and short heads. The results of the present study compared with that of previous studies from medical literature shows that the occurrence of a third head of the biceps brachii muscle is relatively rare in Indians.

Knowledge of the existence of the third head of biceps brachii may become significant in preoperative diagnosis and during surgery of the upper limb.