The Gluteal Region, Back of the Thigh and Popliteal Fossa

The main mass of the buttock consists of a variable amount of fat and the gluteus maximus muscle. Deep to the gluteus maximus there are several muscles and the vessels and nerves which emerge from the pelvis through the greater sciatic foramen. Appearing at the lower edge of the gluteus maximus, the hamstring muscles descend and diverge so that they form the upper boundaries of the hollow at the back of the knee, the popliteal fossa , which contains the continuation of the femoral vessels and the divisions of the main nerve of the lower limb, the sciatic nerve.