Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 22, 2026

Single-stage Dynamic Reanimation of the Smile in Irreversible Facial Paralysis by Free Functional Muscle Transfer
Published on: March 1, 2015
Why adductor magnus muscle is large: the function based on muscle morphology in cadavers
1Department of Physical Therapy, School of Health Science, Ibaraki Prefectural University, Ami-machi, Ibaraki, Japan; Department of Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Sapporo Medical University, Sapporo, Hokkai-do, Japan.
Abstract:
The aim of this study was to examine anatomical properties of the adductor magnus through a detailed classification, and to hypothesize its function and size to gather enough information about morphology. Ten cadaveric specimens of the adductor magnus were used. The muscle was separated into four portios (AM1-AM4) based on the courses of the corresponding perforating arteries, and its volume, muscle length, muscle fiber length and physiological cross-sectional area were assessed. The architectural characteristics of these four portions of the adductor magnus were then classified with the aid of principal component analysis. The results led us into demarcating the most proximal part of the adductor magnus (AM1) from the remaining parts (AM2, AM3, and AM4). Classification of the adductor magnus in terms of architectural characteristics differed from the more traditional anatomical distinction. The AM2, AM3, and AM4, having longer muscle fiber lengths than the AM1, appear to be designed as displacers for moving the thigh through a large range of motion. The AM1 appears instead to be oriented principally toward stabilizing the hip joint. The large mass of the adductor magnus should thus be regarded as a complex of functionally differentiable muscle portions.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Naming Skeletal Muscles
The key factors used in naming muscles include:
Axial and Appendicular Muscles
Axial Muscles
Axial muscles, situated along the body's midline, are intricately connected to the axial skeleton, which includes the skull, spine, ribs, and sternum. These muscles facilitate facial expressions and play a...
Muscles that Move the Thigh
Three other significant muscles are the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus. The gluteus maximus originates from the posterior surface of the ilium, sacrum, and coccyx, and the thoracolumbar fascia...
Muscles that Move the Leg
Anterior Compartment
The quadriceps femoris, the most visible muscle of the anterior compartment, is integral for leg extension and thigh flexion. It is formed by merging four distinct muscles — the vastus lateralis, vastus medialis, vastus intermedius, and rectus femoris. The quadriceps tendon, a shared tendon of the four quadriceps muscles, is affixed to...
Muscles that Move the Arm
The pectoralis major has two origins. Its clavicular head originates on the medial half of the clavicle. In contrast, the sternocostal head originates on the costal cartilages of ribs 1-6, the sternum, and the aponeurosis of the external oblique of the...
Gross Anatomy of Skeletal Muscles

