Superficial branch of the radial nerve
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| Nerve: Superficial branch of the radial nerve | |
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| Diagram of segmental distribution of the cutaneous nerves of the right upper extremity. Anterior view. | |
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| Nerves of the left upper extremity. | |
| Latin | ramus superficialis nervi radialis |
| Gray's | subject #210 944 |
| From | radial nerve |
| Dorlands / Elsevier | r_02/12692164 |
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The superficial branch of the radial nerve passes along the front of the radial side of the forearm to the commencement of its lower third.
It lies at first slightly lateral to the radial artery, concealed beneath the Brachioradialis. In the middle third of the forearm, it lies behind the same muscle, close to the lateral side of the artery.
It quits the artery about 7 cm. above the wrist, passes beneath the tendon of the Brachioradialis, and, piercing the deep fascia, divides into two branches: lateral and medial.
Lateral branch
The lateral branch, the smaller, supplies the radial side of the thumb (by a digital nerve), the skin of the radial side and ball of the thumb, joining with the volar branch of the lateral antibrachial cutaneous nerve.
Medial branch
The medial branch communicates, above the wrist, with the dorsal branch of the lateral antibrachial cutaneous, and, on the back of the hand, with the dorsal branch of the ulnar nerve.
It then divides into four digital nerves, which are distributed as follows: the first supplies the ulnar side of the thumb; the second, the radial side of the index finger; the third, the adjoining sides of the index and middle fingers; the fourth communicates with a filament from the dorsal branch of the ulnar nerve, and supplies the adjacent sides of the middle and ring fingers.
Additional images
 Ulnar and radial arteries. Deep view. |
 Diagram of segmental distribution of the cutaneous nerves of the right upper extremity. Posterior view. |
 Superficial palmar nerves. |
 Deep palmar nerves. |
 Front of right upper extremity, showing surface markings for bones, arteries, and nerves. |
External links
This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained herein may be outdated. Please edit the article if this is the case, and feel free to remove this notice when it is no longer relevant.
Nerves of upper limbs (primarily): the brachial plexus (C5-T1) | |
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| Supraclavicular | root (dorsal scapular, long thoracic) - upper trunk (suprascapular, to the subclavius) |
| Infraclavicular: lateral cord | lateral pectoral
musculocutaneous (lateral cutaneous of forearm) median/lateral root: anterior interosseous - palmar - recurrent - common palmar digital (proper palmar digital) |
| Infraclavicular: medial cord | medial pectoral
cutaneous: medial cutaneous of forearm • medial cutaneous of arm ulnar: muscular - palmar - dorsal (dorsal digital nerves) - superficial (common palmar digital, proper palmar digital) - deep median/medial root: see above |
| Infraclavicular: posterior cord | subscapular (upper, lower) • thoracodorsal
axillary (superior lateral cutaneous of arm) radial: muscular - cutaneous (posterior of arm, inferior lateral of arm, posterior of forearm) - superficial (dorsal digital nerves) - deep (posterior interosseous) |
| Other | cutaneous innervation of the upper limbs |
Acknowledgement and Attribution Regarding Sources of Content
Some of the initial content on this page may be incorporated in part from copyleft sources in the public domain including wikis such as Wikipedia and AskDrWiki. Drug information for patients came from the The National Library of Medicine. Infectious disease information may have come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Differential Diagnoses are drawn from clinicians as well as an amalgamation of 3 sources: 1.The Disease Database; 2. Kahan, Scott, Smith, Ellen G. In A Page: Signs and Symptoms. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 2004:3; 3. Sailer, Christian, Wasner, Susanne. Differential Diagnosis Pocket. Hermosa Beach, CA: Borm Bruckmeir Publishing LLC, 2002:7 .
