Femur

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Bone: Femur

Anterior view of the femur
Gray's	subject #59 242
Origins	Gastrocnemius , Vastus lateralis, Vastus medialis, Vastus intermedius
Insertions	tensor fasciae latae, gluteus medius, gluteus minimus, Gluteus maximus, Iliopsoas
Articulations	hip: acetabulum of pelvis superiorly knee: with the tibia and patella inferiorly
MeSH	A02.835.232.500.247

The femur or thigh bone is the longest, most voluminous, and strongest bone of the human body. It forms part of the hip and part of the knee.

The word "femur" is Latin for "thigh". In medical Latin its genitive is always femoris, but in classical Latin its genitive is often feminis, and should not be confused with case forms of femina = "woman."

1 Fractures
- 1.1 Hip fracture
2 In other animals
3 External links
4 Additional images

[edit] Fractures

Femur fractures, on occasion, are liable to cause permanent disability because the thigh muscles pull the fragments so they overlap, and the fragments re-unite incorrectly. To avoid this, femur fracture patients should be put into traction to keep the fragments pulled into proper alignment. With modern medical procedures, such as the insertion of rods and screws by way of surgery (known as Antegrade [through the shoulder] or Retrograde [through the elbow] femoral rodding) those suffering from femur fractures can now generally expect to make a full recovery, though one that generally takes 3 to 6 months due to the bone's size. The thigh is generally not put in a cast since the surgical hardware does the job of straightening the bone and holding the fracture together while it heals. Permanent complications with this procedure include the risk of intra-articular sepsis, arthritis and knee stiffness. Patients can expect such hardware to be permanent and should not put weight on the leg without permission from an orthopedic surgeon since this can delay the healing process.

[edit] Hip fracture

Main article: Hip fracture

If bone is weakened, the proximal end of the femur near the hip joint is prone to fragility fracture. Most at risk are caucasian, post-menopausal women, and osteoporosis severely increases this risk.

[edit] In other animals

Parallel structures by the same name exist in other complex animals, such as the bone inside a ham or a leg of lamb. The name femur is also given to the most proximal full-length jointed segment of an arthropod's leg.