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Adductor minimus muscle

The adductor minimus is a small, often under-recognized component of the adductor group of the medial thigh. It represents the uppermost separated portion of the adductor magnus, sometimes described as an independent muscle. Its recognition is important in surgical approaches to the hip and thigh, as well as in radiologic interpretation, since it may mimic or overlap with adductor magnus.

Synonyms

  • Upper adductor magnus slip

  • Adductor minimus of the thigh

  • Small adductor muscle

Origin, Course, and Insertion

  • Origin: Arises from the inferior ramus of the pubis

  • Course: Fibers run laterally and slightly downward, forming a short triangular muscle situated immediately above the main adductor magnus fibers

  • Insertion: Inserts onto the upper part of the linea aspera of the femur, just lateral to the insertion of adductor brevis and above the broad attachment of the adductor magnus

Nerve Supply

  • Obturator nerve (posterior division, L2–L4)

Arterial Supply

  • Obturator artery

  • Medial circumflex femoral artery

  • Contributions from profunda femoris artery

Venous Drainage

  • Drains via obturator vein and profunda femoris vein into the femoral vein

Function

  • Adduction of the thigh at the hip joint

  • Assists in flexion and medial rotation of the thigh

  • Contributes to stabilization of the pelvis during movement

MRI Appearance

T1-weighted images:

  • Muscle shows low-to-intermediate signal intensity

  • Fatty streaks or chronic degeneration may appear as bright areas

T2-weighted images:

  • Baseline signal low-to-intermediate

  • Injury, edema, or acute inflammation appears bright

STIR (Short Tau Inversion Recovery):

  • Normal signal is low-to-intermediate

  • Pathological changes such as strain or inflammation appear bright

Proton Density Fat-Sat (PD FS):

  • Muscle shows low-to-intermediate signal

  • Injury or tendinopathy appears bright

T1 Fat-Sat Post-Contrast:

  • Normal muscle enhances mildly and uniformly

  • Pathology shows heterogeneous or focal enhancement; abscess shows rim pattern

CT Appearance

Non-Contrast CT:

  • Homogeneous soft tissue density

  • Hematoma appears as focal dense region

  • Chronic fatty replacement may appear as low density

Post-Contrast CT:

  • Mild uniform enhancement in normal state

  • Inflammatory or neoplastic lesions appear as irregular or intense enhancement

  • Abscess shows central low attenuation with rim enhancement

MRI image

Adductor minimus muscle MRI axial anatomy image-img-00000-00000

CT image

Adductor minimus muscle CT axial image

CT image

Adductor minimus muscle