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A trochanter is a tubercle of the femur near its joint with the hip bone. In humans and most mammals , the trochanters serve as important muscle attachment sites. Humans have two, sometimes three , trochanters.
Same point of view as above of right femur from behind. Greater trochanter is labeled at right. The greater trochanter of the femur is a large, irregular, quadrilateral eminence and a part of the skeletal system. It is directed lateral and medially and slightly posterior. In the adult it is about 2–4 cm lower than the femoral head. [1]
The lesser trochanter is a conical posteromedial projection of the shaft of the femur, projecting from the posteroinferior aspect of its junction with the femoral neck. [1] The summit and anterior surface of the lesser trochanter are rough, whereas its posterior surface is smooth. [1] From its apex three well-marked borders extend: [2]
The femur is the largest and thickest bone in the human body. It is considered the strongest bone by some measures, though other studies suggest the temporal bone may be stronger. On average, the femur length accounts for 26.74% of a person's height, [ 4 ] a ratio found in both men and women across most ethnic groups with minimal variation.
The neck is flattened from before backward, contracted in the middle, and broader laterally than medially. The vertical diameter of the lateral half is increased by the obliquity of the lower edge, which slopes downward to join the body at the level of the lesser trochanter, so that it measures one-third more than the antero-posterior diameter.
The other two borders of the femur are only slightly marked: the lateral border extends from the antero-inferior angle of the greater trochanter to the anterior extremity of the lateral condyle; the medial border from the intertrochanteric line, at a point opposite the lesser trochanter, to the anterior extremity of the medial condyle.
Here the two trochanters, greater and lesser trochanter, is found. The greater trochanter is almost box-shaped and is the most lateral prominent of the femur. The highest point of the greater trochanter is located higher than the collum and reaches the midpoint of the hip joint. The greater trochanter can easily be felt.
This causes the femur to rotate and point the knee laterally. The lateral rotators also oppose medial rotation by the gluteus medius and gluteus minimus. When the hip is flexed to 90 degrees, piriformis abducts the femur at the hip and reverses primary function, internally rotating the hip when the hip is flexed at 90 degrees or more. [7]