European Journal of Anatomy

Official Journal of The Spanish Society of Anatomy
Cover Volume 24 - Number 4
Eur J Anat, 24 (4): 285-288 (2020)

A unique case of mid-tendonpalmaris longus muscle â?? dissection presentation and literature review

Sean M. Bacha1A, Kayla K. Brown1A, Chad D. Richards1A, Aakash A. Trivedi1A, Gary B. Schwartz2B, and Nicholas B. Lutfi3,4A

1Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine, 2Department of Orthopedics, 3Department of Anatomy, 4College of Medical Science, A Nova Southeastern University, Davie, FL, BMemorial Health Network, Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA

ABSTRACT The palmaris longus (PL) muscle is one of five muscles that originates from the common flexor tendon, which attaches at the medial epicondyle of the humerus, and has its own insertion distally into the palmar aponeurosis. Although the PL contrib-utes minimal biomechanical function, its wide ana-tomic variation can produce pathologies in the forearm and wrist such as median nerve entrap-ment. The present work describes a unique case of a PL distally migrated muscle belly with wide tendon both proximal and distal not noted in other anatomical or surgical reference materials. Here-in, the current case is compared to previously re-ported PL variations and their documented fre-quencies by region and ethnicity. Key findings in-clude several studies showing Caucasian popula-tions with greater than 25% frequencies of absent PL, compared to 4-6% in African regions. Potential explanations for this finding include evolutionary adaptations associated with manual labor and need for increased grip strength. In addition, the considerations of abnormal PL in surgical proce-dures inclusive of challenges in graft procedures that might present with such anatomic variations of the PL are examined.

Keywords: Graft â?? Muscle Palmaris Longus â?? Dissection â?? Tendon â?? Wrist flexors

European Journal of anatomy
ISSN 2340-311X (Online)