Applied Macroanatomy of the Sciatic Nerve

Abstract

There are five areas of interest to the regional anesthesiologist and acute pain physician concerning where the sciatic nerve can be approached. These include the parasacral, the transgluteal, the subgluteal, the mid-femoral, and the popliteal areas. These areas and the relationships of the sciatic nerve to other structures in those specific areas, as well as the areas of sensory distributions of the sciatic nerve and its branches are discussed in this chapter. Other nerves, not part of the sciatic nerve but originating from the sacral plexus, such as the posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh and the pudendal nerve, are also discussed in this chapter.

Keywords: Acute pain medicine, Common fibular nerve, Common peroneal nerve, Gluteus maximus muscle, Gluteus medius muscle, Gluteus minimus muscle, Mid-femoral approach, Parasacral approach, Popliteal approach, Posterior cutaneous nerve of the thigh, Pudendal nerve, Quadratus femoris muscle, Regional anesthesia, Sacral plexus, Sciatic nerve, Sonoanatomy, Subgluteal approach, Sural nerve, Tibial nerve.