Superior pubic ligament
Ligamentum pubicum superius
A thick band across the top of the pubic symphysis, joining the two pubic bones as far out as the pubic tubercles.
At a glance
- English
- Superior pubic ligament
- Latin (TA2)
- Ligamentum pubicum superius
- System
- Ligament
- Region
- Abdomen
- Side
- Single, on the midline
About the superior pubic ligament
The pubic symphysis is the joint between the two hip bones at the front of the pelvis, a secondary cartilaginous joint with a fibrocartilage disc at its centre. Four ligaments surround it. The ones above and below, the superior and inferior pubic ligaments, carry most of the load; those on the front and back are thinner and weaker.
The superior pubic ligament runs horizontally across the upper border of the joint. It attaches on each side along the pubic crest and reaches out sideways to the pubic tubercles. Below, it blends with the upper edge of the interpubic disc, so that ligament and disc work as one unit. It is thick and strong and stands out as a firm ridge that can be felt above the joint in thin individuals.
Several tendons spread across its front and add to its strength. The rectus abdominis and the aponeurosis of the external oblique attach around it above, and the adductor longus and gracilis attach to the bone just below and beside it. These muscles pull on the joint in opposite directions, and the ligament with its tendinous reinforcements helps share those forces between the two sides.
The joint normally moves only a little, and the superior ligament limits the bones separating at the top and shearing up and down. Imbalance between the abdominal and adductor pulls, common in kicking sports, can strain this region and contribute to athletic groin pain and osteitis pubis. In serious pelvic trauma the ligaments may tear and the symphysis may widen, a sign of an unstable ring on X-ray.
Attachments and function
- Attaches from
- The pubic crest and tubercle of one pubic bone.
- Attaches to
- The pubic crest and tubercle of the other pubic bone, blending below with the interpubic disc.
- Function
- Holds the upper margins of the pubic bones together and resists separation and vertical shear at the symphysis, sharing the pull of the abdominal and adductor muscles.
- Nerve supply
- The symphysis is supplied by twigs of the ilio-inguinal, genitofemoral and pudendal nerves.
- Blood supply
- Pubic branches of the obturator and inferior epigastric arteries.
Anthromica
See the superior pubic ligament where it really sits, with every layer of the body around it.
- Every layer, one body. Peel from muscle to bone, nerve, vessel and organ, and turn it any way.
- English and Latin. Every structure named the way your exam names it.
- Quiz until it sticks. Short drills on the structures you keep missing.
Free to start. No card.
