| Lateral arcuate ligament | |
|---|---|
 Thediaphragm. Under surface. (Lat. arcuate ligament visible at bottom left.) | |
| Details | |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | ligamentum arcuatum laterale |
| TA98 | A04.4.02.007 |
| FMA | 58283 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
Thelateral arcuate ligament (alsolateral lumbocostal arch andexternal arcuate ligament) is aligament under thediaphragm that arches across the upper part of thequadratus lumborum muscle. It is traversed by thesubcostal nerve,artery andvein.
The lateral arcuate ligament runs from the front of the transverse process of the firstlumbar vertebra, and, laterally, to the tip and lower margin of the twelfthrib.[1] It forms an arch over thequadratus lumborum muscle.[1]
The lateral arcuate ligament is commonly described in anatomy textbooks as attaching at the first lumbar vertebra (L1).[2] However, other instances have been found incadaver studies with attachments at either the second (L2) or third (L3) lumbar vertebra.[2]
In around 5% of people, inferolateral extensions of the lateral arcuate ligaments, such as thickened nodular areas, are found adjacent to the lateral diaphragmatic surface which can be visualized withcomputed tomography (CT) scans.[3]
The lateral arcuate ligaments were described byGalen, as early as AD 177.[4][5] This was found in his animal dissections performed as part of hisRome lectures, collected inDe Anatomicus Administrationibus.[4][5]
This article incorporates text in thepublic domain frompage 405 of the 20th edition ofGray's Anatomy(1918)
