title: The lacertus fibrosus of the biceps brachii muscle: an anatomical study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The lacertus fibrosus (LF) is involved in various surgical procedures. However, the anatomy, morphometry, topography and biomechanical involvements of LF are not clear. The purpose of this study was to determine the anatomical and morphometric variations of LF, and to correlate this with anthropometric and morphometric measurements of the upper limb. Furthermore, the presence or absence of a deep layer of LF was verified using forearm cross-sections and dissections.
  
  
  METHODS
  This anatomical study was performed by observation of dissections and transverse sections obtained from 50 cadavers. Morphometric analyses [length and width of LF and biceps tendon, stature, length of upper limb, forearm, bi-epicondylar width, forearm perimeter, biceps brachii muscle perimeter (BBm)] were also performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results demonstrated that there was no significant correlation between LF morphology and morphometric upper limb measurements. The deep layer of LF was observed in all specimens.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results of this paper indicate that the LF presents individual characteristics such as length and width. The deeper layer of LF was observed on all specimens. The possible role of LF in force transmission during flexion, BBm moment arm adjustment and supination reduction is discussed in view of these results.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Anatomy, Biomechanics and Organogenesis (LABO), Faculty of Medicine, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium, osnoeck@ulb.ac.be.
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Snoeck
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lefèvre
authors.forename: Erica
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sprio
authors.forename: Raphaëlle
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Beslay
authors.forename: Veronique
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Feipel
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rooze
authors.forename: Serge
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Van Sint Jan
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D059925:Anatomic Landmarks; D001132:Arm / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D002102:Cadaver; D004210:Dissection; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D013710:Tendons / Q000033:anatomy & histology