Deep Peroneal Nerve

Description

Arising from the common fibular (peroneal) nerve at the lateral neck of the fibula, the deep fibular nerve runs anteriorly into the leg and descends in the anterior compartment toward the ankle, typically alongside the anterior tibial artery. Distally it passes deep to the extensor retinacula onto the dorsum of the foot, where it terminates as medial and lateral terminal branches. On the dorsum, the medial branch tracks more medially with extensor hallucis longus toward the first web space, while the lateral branch courses laterally across the tarsus to supply extensor digitorum brevis. Small dorsal vessels accompany the nerve. Clear relationships. That terminal bifurcation matters because the deep fibular nerve carries the classic sensory territory of the first dorsal web space, a bedside landmark when you suspect a lesion of the anterior compartment or an injury at the ankle. Entrapment beneath the inferior extensor retinaculum (anterior tarsal tunnel syndrome) or iatrogenic traction during ankle arthroscopy can produce dorsal foot pain and paresthesia with weakness of toe extension, and the depicted course helps distinguish this pattern from superficial fibular neuropathy. Proximal fibular neck trauma can injure the parent nerve, but isolated deep branch involvement localizes the problem distally. Use this artwork to annotate lectures in lower limb anatomy, neuroanatomy, or peripheral nerve examination, and to support figures in sports medicine and orthopaedic texts discussing anterior ankle pain, extensor retinaculum release, or compartment syndrome. It also fits podiatry training materials that map sensory loss patterns across the dorsum of the foot and relate them to motor deficits in extensor hallucis longus and extensor digitorum longus. Anatomical accuracy verified by SciePro's Medical Advisory Board.