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Gastrocnemius
Other Terms:
Triceps surae,
M.gastrocnemius,
Musculus gastrocnemius,
Muscle gastrocnémien
Muscle parts
Lateral head; Medial head
Latin name
Musculus triceps surae – Musculus gastrocnemius
Latin muscle parts
Caput laterale; Caput mediale
Group
Crural muscle – posterior compartment – superficial group
Etymology
The English name for this prominent muscle of the calf is the belly muscle of the leg. Gastrocnemius comes from the Greek gaster meaning “belly” and kneme meaning the “leg.”
Origin
Proximal surface of the lateral condyle of the femur posterior to the adductor tubercle and a ridge on the posterior surface of the femur just proximal to the medial condyle (medial head); the lateral surface of the lateral condyle and the lateral supracondylar line (lateral head); both heads send fibers into the posterior surface of the joint capsule of the knee.
Insertion
Posterior surface of the calcaneus via the shared tendo calcaneus.
Action
Plantar flexion of the ankle joint; flexion of the knee.
Nerve supply
Tibial nerve (S1 and S2)
Blood supply
From proximal to distal, the belly of the muscle is supplied by the sural branches of the popliteal artery, the medial inferior genicular artery, the lateral inferior genicular artery, the posterior tibial artery, and the peroneal artery. The tendon receives a blood supply from the anterior and posterior, medial and lateral malleolar arteries, the calcanean branches of the posterior tibial artery, and the lateral plantar artery.
Latin
Musculus gastrocnemius
French
Muscle gastrocnémien
