Skip to main content

1840HarrisonR

 

Content



[i] Annotation

Fragment from the book: Harrison R. The Dublin Dissector, Or Manual of Anatomy: Comprising a Description of the Bones, Muscles, Vessels, Nerves, and Viscera; Also the Relative Anatomy of the Different Regions of the Human Body, Together with the Elements of Pathology (1840). The author describes the anatomy, topography, dimensions, attachment, and role of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF), and discusses its injury in hip dislocations. The text in Russian is available at the following link: 1840HarrisonR.


Quote pp. 518-521. 

The cotyloid ligament may be next noticed, this is the fibro-cartilaginous lip which deepens the acetabulum, and at the same time narrows its orifice, so as to hold or retain the head of the femur even after the capsular ligament and all the muscles have been divided; it is composed of strong circular fibres, these pass in deeper in those particular situations where the acetabulum in infancy was separable into three parts; it serves to deepen the cavity, and to prevent the neck of the femur striking against the sharp edge of the cavity.

Transverse ligament consists of ligamentous bands, which pass across the notch in the border of the acetabulum, some pass from the pubis to the ischium, others decussate these and pass from ischium to pubis; it completes the margin of the cavity and leaves sufficient space above it for the passage of vessels and nerves.

Inter-articular ligament, or ligamentum teres, is about an inch and a half in length [38.1 mm.], it consists of fine ligamentous fibres covered rather loosely by synovial membrane; though called round, it is rather of a triangular form, the base attached to the notch and to the depression in the acetabulum, the apex to the head of the femur; it arises by two flat bands, the superior of which is the smaller, from the margins of the cotyloid notch, these soon unite being enveloped by the synovial membrane, the ligament then runs upwards, backwards and outwards, contracting in size, between the articular fatty mass and the head of the bone, into the depression on which it is inserted.

[This ligament is frequently described incorrectly. By one extremity it is attached to the depression on the head of the femur, towards the other it divides into two roots; of which one may be traced around the lower edge of the cotyloid notch, until it is finally lost upon the face of the ischium, between its tuberosity and the edge of the acetabulum; the other root may be traced to the upper end of the notch, where it is lost near the edge of the acetabulum; hence this ligament is not necessarily torn off in the dislocation of the femur, into the obturator foramen, for in this displacement the two extremities of the ligament are approximated.]

This ligament is very rarely wanting, it serves to conduct blood-vessels from the acetabulum to the head and neck of the femur, which from its position in respect to the shaft of the bone, may require a nutritious supply from this source; some consider it may also limit too much abduction of the thigh. This joint enjoys free motion in every direction, flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, rotation and circumduction; the depth of the acetabulum, the strength of its capsular ligament, together with the surrounding muscles, all seem well adapted to prevent luxation, such accidents, however, not unfrequently occur.

This joint is not so liable to dislocation as that of the shoulder for several reasons; in the first place, its motions are much more limited both in number and extent; second, the glenoid cavity affords little mechanical security, while the cotyloid on the contrary permits the head of the femur to sink into it; third, the oblique direction also of the head of the thigh bone presents an additional obstacle; fourth, the capsular ligament of this joint is much stronger and shorter than that of the shoulder, and it is further protected by very strong accessory fibres on the outer and upper part, which descend from the inferior anterior spine of the ilium, and by some on the inner side from the superior part of the foramen ovale.

The joint of the hip may be dislocated in four ways, backwards and upwards on the dorsum of the ilium, backwards on the ischiatic notch, forwards and upwards on the pubes, and forwards and downwards on the foramen obturatorium.

[One case has occurred of a dislocation of the femur into the perineum; this was probably a secondary displacement, supervening upon a primary dislocation into the obturator foramen. This case has never been published, but the minutes of it, are in the possession of Dr. Parker, Prof. of Surgery in the college.]

The situation of the trochanter major is a point of great importance in discriminating accidents about the hip joint, and its relation to some other prominent points should be well kept in mind; in the erect position of the body, the superior part of the trochanter major is nearly on the same level with the body of the pubes, the distance between the anterior superior spine of the ilium and the trochanter major is less than from this projection to the os pubis, or from the os pubis to the anterior superior spine, lines connecting these three points will form nearly a right angled triangie, angle, of which the longest side is the line connecting the superior spine to the pubis, and the shortest, that which joins the spine to the trochanter. In dislocation upwards or backwards the trochanter is brought nearer the superior anterior spine of the ilium, but is much less prominent than natural: in the luxation backward it is removed from the body of the pubis, and is also less prominent than natural in the dislocation into the obturator foramen, the distance between the trochanter major and the body of the pubis is lessened, while that between this process and the anterior superior spine is greater than usual.

In dislocation upwards and backwards, which is by far the most frequent, the head of the bone rests on the dorsum of the ilium, the upper part of the capsular ligament is ruptured, and the accessory and round ligamen ligaments are torn: the limb is shortened about two inches, and is inverted and almost fixed. In rotation inwards the head of the femur is pressed against the back part of the capsular ligament, and if the rotation be carried far, a considerable portion of the bone is outside the cotyloid cavity: hence the species of dislocation now described is most likely to occur when rotation inwards is accompanied by external violence, that is by the individual falling or receiving a blow when the knee and foot are turned inwards. When this dislocation has occurred the three glutæi muscles are those principally concerned in keeping the head of the bone fixed on the dorsum of the ilium; but when the limb has been extended and the head of the bone is sufficiently raised to pass over the edge of the acetabulum, the psoas and iliacus with the obturator externus and pectinalis, will assist to bring it into the proper situation. Although in common cases of dislocation we may presume, from the rapid recovery of the patient, that no other injury is done to the joint than what has been already described, yet the dissection of a case of luxation upwards and backwards has been published, in which the gemelli, pyriformis, obturators, and quadratus femoris, were completely torn across, with laceration of some fibres of the pectinalis

In the dislocation backwards, and which is also a little upwards, or that into the ischiatic notch, the head of the bone rests on the pyriformis muscle and between it and the sciatic ligaments, the limb is a little shortened, it is also inverted, but much less so than in the dislocation on the dorsum of the ilium. This dislocation also is most likely to happen when the thigh is rotated inwards and bent towards the abdomen.

When the femur is dislocated forwards on the obturator foramen, the capsular ligament and the internal accessory fibres are lacerated. The ligamentum teres is, according to Sir A. Cooper, always ruptured: the limb is lengthened about two inches, the knee advanced and abducted with slight eversion, the great trochanter is much less prominent than usual.

In dislocation upwards and forwards the head of the bone rests on the ramus of the pubis under Poupart's ligament, where it may be plainly felt; the limb is shortened, slightly flexed, and everted.

A calculation has been made, that out of twenty dislocations of the hip joint, twelve will take place on the dorsum ilii, five on the ischiatic notch, two on the foramen ovale, and one on the pubis. 

 

Harrison R. The Dublin Dissector, Or Manual of Anatomy: Comprising a Description of the Bones, Muscles, Vessels, Nerves, and Viscera; Also the Relative Anatomy of the Different Regions of the Human Body, Together with the Elements of Pathology. New York: J. & HG Langley, 1840. books.google


The work is cited in the following publications: 1848HarrisonR.


Robert Harrison (1796-1858He was appointed Demonstrator of Anatomy in the College School in 1817 and Professor of Anatomy and Physiology on August 4th, 1827. He became Professor of Anatomy and Chirurgery in the School of Physic at Trinity College, Dublin, in 1887livesonline.rcseng.ac.uk , collections.nlm.nih.gov


ligamentum capitis femoris, ligamentum teres, ligament of head of femur, anatomy, properties, role, pathology, dislocation



NB! Fair practice / use: copied for the purposes of criticism, review, comment, research and private study in accordance with Copyright Laws of the US: 17 U.S.C. §107; Copyright Law of the EU: Dir. 2001/29/EC, art.5/3a,d; Copyright Law of the RU: ГК РФ ст.1274/1.1-2,7

                                                                   

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Test catalog of the LCF pathology

  Test catalog of the ligamentum capitis femoris pathology By Sergey V. Arkhipov, MD, PhD     CONTENT [i]   Abstract [ii]   Introduction [iii]   Testing in the supine position [iv]   Testing in a standing position [v]   Gait study [vi]   References [vii]   Application [i]   Abstract A description of tests for the detection and differential diagnosis of ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) pathology is presented. [ii]   Introduction One of the first studies devoted to the diagnosis of LCF injury demonstrated a variety of symptoms: groin pain, hip stiffness, sometimes long-standing minimal clinical findings, or signs similar to osteoarthritis (1997GrayA_VillarRN). More than a decade later, researchers concluded: "Unfortunately, there is no specific test for detecting LCF tears." The signs known at that time were nonspecific and were also observed in other intra-articular pathologies of the hip joint (2010CerezalL_Pérez-CarroL). The a...

2024StetzelbergerVM_TannastM

   Content [i]   Summary [ii]   Annotation [iii]   Illustrations and References [iv]   Source  &  links [v]   Notes [vi]   Authors & Affiliations [vii]   Keywords [i]   Summary Abstract of the article Stetzelberger VM, Nishimura H, Hollenbeck JF, Garcia A, Brown JR, Schwab JM, Philippon JM, Tannast M (2024). The authors found low ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) strength in patients with femoroacetabular impingement. A Russian translation is available at this link: 2024StetzelbergerVM_TannastM . [ii]   Annotation Background:  Intraarticular hip pain represents a substantial clinical challenge, with recent studies implicating lesions in the ligamentum teres as potential contributors. Even more so, damage to the ligamentum teres is particularly prevalent among young patients undergoing joint-preserving interventions. Although several studies have investigated the biomechanical attributes of the ligamentum teres,...

1836-1840PartridgeR

  «Prof. Partridge in his lectures on anatomy at King's College was accustomed to compare the Ligamentum Teres, in its function, to the leathern straps by which the body of a carriage is suspended on springs » ( 1874SavoryWS ). Perhaps Nikolai Pirogov listened to these lectures ( 1859PirogoffN ).   The analogy that Richard Partridge used could have arisen after reading the monograph Bell J. The Principles of Surgery (1801) . In it, the author depicted a cart and a pelvis resting on the head of one and two femurs. However, there is no mention of ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) in the chart descriptions. References Savory WS. On the use of the ligamentum teres of the hip joint. J Anat Physiol. 1874;8(2)291-6.    [ ncbi.nlm.nih.gov  ,    archive.org ] Pirogoff N. Anatome topographica sectionibus per corpus humanum congelatum triplici directione ductus illustrate. Petropoli: Typis Jacobi Trey, 1859.   [ books.google  ,   archive.org ] ...

2025ChenJH_AcklandD

  The article by Chen JH, Al’Khafaji I, Ernstbrunner L, O’Donnell J, Ackland D. Joint contact behavior in the native, ligamentum teres deficient and surgically reconstructed hip: A biomechanics study on the anatomically normal hip (2025). The authors experimentally demonstrated the role of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) in unloading the upper sector of the acetabulum and the femoral head. The text in Russian is available at the following link: 2025ChenJH_AcklandD . Joint contact behavior in the native, ligamentum teres deficient and surgically reconstructed hip: A biomechanics study on the anatomically normal hip By  Chen JH, Al’Khafaji I, Ernstbrunner L, O’Donnell J, Ackland D.     CONTENT [i]   Abstract [ii]   Introduction [iii]   Materials and methods [iv]   Results [v]   Discussion and Conclusion [vi]   References [vii]   Application [i]   Abstract Background The ligamentum teres is known to contribute to hip joint st...

Who, When, and Where Wrote the Book of Genesis?

  Who, When, and Where Wrote the Book of Genesis?  A Medical Hypothesis By Sergey V. Arkhipov, MD, PhD & Lyudmila N. Arkhipova, BSN     CONTENT [i]   Abstract [ii]   Introduction [iii]   Egyptian physician [iv]   Asian diviner [v]   Conclusion [vi]   References [vii]   Application [i]   Abstract The Book of Genesis is an example of an ancient literary text that contains important medical insights. We propose that it was written in northern Egypt in the late 17th century BCE, approximately ten years after the Minoan eruption. The protograph likely emerged from the collaboration between an Asiatic seer, who rose to the rank of an Egyptian official, and an Egyptian physician-encyclopedist. By refining its dating and authorship, this hypothesis positions Genesis as a credible source of medical and historical data, thereby enhancing its value for interdisciplinary research. [ii]   Introduction According to Rabbinic Judais...

2025SrinivasanS_SakthivelS

The article by Srinivasan S, Verma S, Sakthivel S. Macromorphological Profile of Ligamentum Teres Femoris in Human Cadavers–A Descriptive Study (2025) is devoted to the morphology of ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) in the Indian population. The text in Russian is available at the following link: 2025SrinivasanS_SakthivelS . Macromorphological Profile of Ligamentum Teres Femoris in Human Cadavers–A Descriptive Study By  Srinivasan S, Verma S, Sakthivel S.   CONTENT [i]   Abstract [ii]   Introduction [iii]   Materials and Methods [iv]   Results and Discussion [v]   Conclusion [vi]   References [vii]   Application [i]   Abstract Introduction: The ligamentum teres femoris (LTF) is an intra-articular ligament extending from fossa of acetabulum to the head of femur and is triangular or pyramidal in shape. Recent literature supports its role as a secondary stabilizer of hip and increasing evidence supports reconstructive surgery following tear...

1996ChenHH_LeeMC

  Abstract of the article Chen HH, Li AF, Li KC, Wu JJ, Chen TS, Lee MC. Adaptations of ligamentum teres in ischemic necrosis of human femoral head (1996). The authors investigate the strength of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF)  in avascular necrosis and femoral neck fracture.  The text in Russian is available at the following link: 1996ChenHH_LeeMC . Annotation   Little is known about the biomechanical properties of human ligamentum teres. To more fully understand the ligamentum teres, its dimensions and mechanical properties were measured in 22 cases of acute fracture of the femoral neck and 21 cases of ischemic necrosis of the femoral head. The specimens first were preconditioned and then loaded to failure with a testing machine at a fast strain rate of 100% s(-1). The ischemic necrosis group had a significantly larger volume (3.09 +/- 1.81 ml versus 1.30 +/- 0.62 ml) and cross section area (65.3 +/- 59.1 mm2 versus 30.6 +/- 27.2 mm2) than did the acute f...

2024GillHS

  Content [i]   Annotation [ii]   Original text [iii]   Illustrations & References [iv]   Source  &  links [v]   Notes [vi]   Authors & Affiliations [vii]   Keywords [i]   Annotation Article by Gill HS. CORR Insights: How Strong Is the Ligamentum Teres of the Hip? A Biomechanical Analysis (2024). To clarify the role of ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF), the author recommends a combination of experimental studies with computer modeling. The text in Russian is available at the following link: 2024GillHS [ii]   Original text Where Are We Now? Hip preservation surgery has seen a rapid increase in usage over the last 15 years [10], in large part driven by the groundbreaking work of Ganz et al. [5], who described the association between femoroacetabular impingement and hip osteoarthritis and who also developed effective methods of surgical dislocation that maintain the blood supply to the femoral head [4]. Arthroscopic met...

2025ArkhipovSV. Physicians Who Became Gods

   The English translation of the artistic etude by Sergei Arkhipov « Врачи , ставшие Богами : Рационально - критическое богословие » . The etude that mentions LCF is based on the Prologue and Epilogue of the essay: Архипов СВ. Дети человеческие: истоки библейских преданий в обозрении врача . Йоэнсуу: Издание Автора, 2025. [Arkhipov SV. Human Children: The Origins of Biblical Legends from a Physician's Perspective].  Physician s Who Became Gods: Rational-Critical Theology By Sergey V. Arkhipov     CONTENT The Prolegomena The Scene The play “ Immanuel ” The Divertissement The Prelude The Creation and Birth The Ministry and Teaching The Coda The Reflections a fter Word and Sound Application The Prolegomena Is it ethical to offer children, the sick, and the less educated a literal or supernatural interpretation of Genesis and the Gospels when a reasonable explanation exists? I propose a rational, interdisciplinary reading of the Scriptures from the perspective...

1848HarrisonR

   Content [i]   Annotation [ii]   Original text [iii]   Illustrations [iv]   Source  &  links [v]   Notes [vi]   Authors & Affiliations [vii]   Keywords [i]   Annotation Fragments from the book: Harrison R. Textbook of Practical Anatomy (1848). The author discusses the anatomy, topography, and role of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF), noting its length as 1.5 inches, or approximately 38 mm. The text in Russian is available at the following link: 1848HarrisonR . [ii]   Original text Quote pp. 654-655.   Mr. Flood (Lancet, 1829-30, page 672) has described an intarticular ligament, which, he says, "may be easily exposed by cutting through the inferior part of the capsule transversely, and throwing back the arm over the head. You thus expose the interior of the upper part of the capsule, also the biceps tendon. Parallel to the inner edge of the latter this ligament may be felt, and exposed by a lit...