Rectus femoris

The rectus femoris muscle is one of the four heads of the quadriceps muscle.

rectus femoris component of the quadriceps muscle
quadriceps muscles

 

Spanning two joints

The rectus femoris is the strongest of the quadriceps heads, and spans both hip and knee joint (because the patella or kneecap is an intrinsic part of the tendon, so the tendon really reaches to the tibia).

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Related Content

Patella and Trochlear Groove

Quick overview of the kneecap anatomy.

The muscles of the knee

Learn the names of the main knee muscles.

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FORUM DISCUSSIONS

Torn quad ( rectus femoris ) muscle.

Tight hip muscles cause patellar maltracking or tilt?

CLINICAL PUBLICATIONS

Clinical Anatomy of the Quadriceps Femoris and Extensor Apparatus of the Knee. Waligora AC, Johanson NA and Hirsch BE. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 2009 Dec; 467(12): 3297–3306.

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