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Adductor brevis muscle

The adductor brevis muscle is a flat, triangular muscle of the medial thigh. It lies deep to the pectineus and adductor longus, and superficial to the adductor magnus. It plays a crucial role in thigh adduction and assists in stabilizing the pelvis during locomotion. Knowledge of its anatomy, vascular supply, and imaging characteristics is essential for musculoskeletal radiologists, orthopedic surgeons, and sports medicine specialists.

Synonyms

  • Short adductor of thigh

  • Adductor brevis of medial compartment

  • Medial thigh adductor muscle

Origin and Insertion

  • Origin: Body and inferior ramus of the pubis

  • Insertion: Pectineal line and proximal part of linea aspera of the femur

Nerve Supply

  • Obturator nerve (anterior or posterior division, L2–L4)

Arterial Supply

  • Obturator artery (main supply)

  • Contributions from medial circumflex femoral artery and deep femoral (profunda femoris) artery

Venous Drainage

  • Corresponding veins drain into the obturator vein and deep femoral vein, ultimately into the femoral vein

Function

  • Adduction of the thigh

  • Assists in flexion and medial rotation of the thigh

  • Provides pelvic stability during walking and running

MRI Appearance

T1-weighted images (CORRECTED):

  • Normal muscle: low-to-intermediate (dark gray) signal; markedly lower than fat (fat is bright).

  • Fatty infiltration/myosteatosis: T1 hyperintense streaks/areas.

  • Hemorrhage: acute often iso- to mildly hypointense; subacute (methemoglobin) becomes T1 hyperintense.

  • Tendons/aponeuroses: very low (black) signal.

T2-weighted images (CORRECTED):

  • Normal muscle: low-to-intermediate (dark) signal relative to fat and fluid (both brighter).

  • Edema/strain/myositis: T2 hyperintense (often feathery at the myotendinous junction).

  • Chronic fibrosis/scar: low T2 (dark) bands/plaques.

  • Tendons/aponeuroses: very low signal.

STIR (Short Tau Inversion Recovery):

  • Fat suppressed; normal muscle low-to-intermediate.

  • Edema/inflammation/acute injury: markedly hyperintense.

  • Useful to screen for subtle strains and compare sides.

Proton Density Fat-Sat (PD FS):

  • Normal muscle: low-to-intermediate after fat suppression.

  • Edema/partial tears/tendinopathy: bright hyperintense foci or linear signals; excellent for extent mapping.

T1 Fat-Sat Post-Contrast:

  • Normal muscle: mild, homogeneous enhancement.

  • Myositis/tumor: avid or heterogeneous enhancement.

  • Abscess/necrosis/complete tear with hematoma: peripheral rim enhancement with non-enhancing core (fluid/hematoma/necrosis).

CT Appearance

Non-Contrast CT:

  • Muscle is isodense to other skeletal muscles (~40–50 HU); clear fat planes define borders with adductor longus/magnus.

  • Acute hematoma: hyperdense (often >50–60 HU) relative to muscle.

  • Chronic scar/fatty change: may show low attenuation strands or focal fat.

Post-Contrast CT:

  • Normal muscle: mild, homogeneous enhancement.

  • Inflammation/neoplasm: greater and possibly heterogeneous enhancement.

  • Abscess/necrotic tumor: rim enhancement with low-attenuation center.

MRI image

Adductor Brevis Muscle MRI axial anatomy image-img-00000-00000

CT image

Adductor brevis muscle CT axial image

CT image

Adductor brevis muscle ct cornal