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Popliteal vein: anatomy, location and function

A deep vein behind the knee formed by the joining of the anterior and posterior tibial veins. It drains the leg below the knee and the knee region.

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Highlighted in the model: Popliteal vein. Click any part to read about it, or switch off “Highlight topic” to see the whole body. 3D data: BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0; meshes simplified and recoloured. The model is an adult male.

Popliteal vein at a glance

What it is
A deep vein behind the knee formed by the joining of the anterior and posterior tibial veins.
Location
It lies posterior to the popliteal artery in the popliteal fossa and continues upward as the femoral vein, receiving the small saphenous vein.
Function
It drains the leg below the knee and the knee region.
Body system
Cardiovascular · paired (left and right)
FMA ID
FMA44329 (Foundational Model of Anatomy)

Key facts

  • It is the continuation of the tibial veins and becomes the femoral vein.
  • In the popliteal fossa it lies between the popliteal artery (deepest) and the tibial nerve (most superficial).

Clinical relevance

Deep vein thrombosis commonly involves the popliteal vein.

Structures next to the popliteal vein

The nearest named structures in the 3D model, measured from the centre of each part:

References

  1. Foundational Model of Anatomy: Popliteal vein (FMA44329). EMBL-EBI Ontology Lookup Service.
  2. OpenStax. Anatomy and Physiology 2e, §20.1 Structure and Function of Blood Vessels. Rice University, 2022.
  3. 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.

Explore the whole body in the interactive 3D human anatomy model, or browse the A–Z list of human structures.