Deep fibular nerve

Structure

Lateral side of the leg

The deep fibular nerve is the nerve of the anterior compartment of the leg and the dorsum of the foot. It is one of the terminal branches of the common fibular nerve. It corresponds to the posterior interosseus nerve of the forearm. It begins at the lateral side of the fibula bone, and then enters the anterior compartment by piercing the anterior intermuscular septum. It then pierces the extensor digitorum longus and lies next to the anterior tibial artery, following the course of the artery until the ankle-joint where the nerve divides into medial and lateral terminal branches. In the leg, the deep fibular nerve divides into several branches:

• Muscular branches: Supplies four muscles in the leg: tibialis anterior, extensor hallucis longus, extensor digitorum longus, and fibularis tertius

Foot

Close to the ankle joint, the deep fibular nerve terminates by dividing into medial and lateral terminal branches.

• Medial terminal branch: This nerve accompanies the dorsalis pedis artery along the dorsum of the foot, and, at the first interosseous space, divides into two dorsal digital nerves which supply the adjacent sides of the great and second toes, communicating with the medial dorsal cutaneous branch of the superficial fibular nerve. Before it divides it gives off to the first space an interosseous branch which supplies the metatarsophalangeal joint of the great toe and sends a filament to the first Interosseous dorsalis muscle.
• Lateral terminal branch - This nerve passes across the tarsus, beneath the extensor digitorum brevis, supplying latter. This nerve ends in a pseudoganglion deep to the extensor digitorum brevis. From the pseudoganglion, three minute branches are given off to supply the tarsal joints and the metatarsophalangeal joints of the second, third, and fourth toes.