Interosseous membrane of forearm at a glance
- What it is
- A broad fibrous sheet joining the radius and ulna.
- Location
- Stretches between the interosseous borders of the radius and ulna along most of the shaft.
- Function
- Binds the two bones together, transmits force from the radius to the ulna, and provides muscle attachment.
- Body system
- Skeletal · paired (left and right)
- FMA ID
- FMA23707 (Foundational Model of Anatomy)
Key facts
- Its fibres run obliquely downward and medially from the radius to the ulna.
- Its oblique fibres pass force from the radius, which takes most load at the wrist, to the ulna, which takes most at the elbow.
- The anterior and posterior interosseous vessels and nerves run on its surfaces.
Structures next to the interosseous membrane of forearm
The nearest named structures in the 3D model, measured from the centre of each part:
- Extensor digiti minimi · muscular
- Radial artery · cardiovascular
- Palmaris longus · muscular
- Ulnar artery · cardiovascular
- Extensor carpi ulnaris · muscular
- Radius · skeletal
- Anterior interosseous artery · cardiovascular
- Flexor carpi radialis · muscular
- Radial vein · cardiovascular
- Ulnar vein · cardiovascular
References
- Foundational Model of Anatomy: Interosseous membrane of forearm (FMA23707). EMBL-EBI Ontology Lookup Service.
- OpenStax. Anatomy and Physiology 2e, §7.1 Divisions of the Skeletal System. Rice University, 2022.
- Mitsuhashi N. et al. (2009). BodyParts3D: 3D structure database for anatomical concepts. Nucleic Acids Research 37, D782–D785. Data © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0.
Related anatomy
Explore the whole body in the interactive 3D human anatomy model, or browse the A–Z list of human structures.