Blood Supply to the Knee Wheeless

Description: - blood supply to skin around the knee is random (as opposed to axial)
- there are multiple small overlapping vessels that are interrupted by multiple small incisions;
- random supply is sustained by both intrinsic and extrinsic sources;
- intrinsic contributors to skin overlying knee are perforationg branches of the superior and inferior genicular systems;
- extrinsic supply: 3 sources;
- descending genicular (supreme genicular artery) branch of superficial femoral artery
- recurrent branch of anterior tibial artery;
- descending branch of the lateral femoral circumflex artery
Wheeless' Textbook of Orthopaedics