<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations . Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations . (June 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> The lateral cutaneous nerve of the thigh (also called the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve) is a cutaneous nerve that innervates the skin on the lateral part of the thigh . </P> <P> The lateral cutaneous nerve of the thigh is a nerve of the lumbar plexus . It arises from the dorsal divisions of the second and third lumbar nerves (L2 - L3). It emerges from the lateral border of the psoas major at about its middle, and crosses the iliacus muscle obliquely, toward the anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS). It then passes under the inguinal ligament, through the lacuna musculorum and then over the sartorius muscle into the thigh, where it divides into an anterior and a posterior branch . </P> <P> The anterior branch becomes superficial about 10 cm below the inguinal ligament, and divides into branches which are distributed to the skin of the anterior and lateral parts of the thigh, as far as the knee . The terminal filaments of this nerve frequently communicate with the anterior cutaneous branches of the femoral nerve, and with the infrapatellar branch of the saphenous nerve, forming with them the peripatellar plexus . </P>

Nerve root of lateral cutaneous nerve of thigh