Which nerve is affected with fracture of head and neck of fibula?

Which nerve is affected with fracture of head and neck of fibula?

• A. Tibial
• B. Deep fibular
• C. Common fibular
• D. Sural

Answer: (C)

The nerve most likely affected by fracture of the head and neck of the fibula is the common fibular (peroneal) nerve. This nerve winds around the fibular neck just beneath the skin, making it particularly vulnerable to injury at this location. Because it is intact in that region before it divides, a fracture there disrupts both its motor branches to the anterior and lateral compartments of the leg and its sensory fibers, leading to weakness of dorsiflexion and eversion and sensory loss on the dorsum of the foot (including the first web space). The tibial nerve travels medially in the posterior leg and is not typically injured by a neck fracture, and the sural nerve is a downstream cutaneous branch with contributions from both tibial and common fibular paths, not the primary nerve at risk at the fibular neck.

The nerve most likely affected by fracture of the head and neck of the fibula is the common fibular (peroneal) nerve. This nerve winds around the fibular neck just beneath the skin, making it particularly vulnerable to injury at this location. Because it is intact in that region before it divides, a fracture there disrupts both its motor branches to the anterior and lateral compartments of the leg and its sensory fibers, leading to weakness of dorsiflexion and eversion and sensory loss on the dorsum of the foot (including the first web space). The tibial nerve travels medially in the posterior leg and is not typically injured by a neck fracture, and the sural nerve is a downstream cutaneous branch with contributions from both tibial and common fibular paths, not the primary nerve at risk at the fibular neck.