Posterior Compartment of Forearm (Left)

Description

The muscles of the posterior compartment (extensor compartment) are one of two subgroups of the forearm muscles, the other being the muscles of the anterior compartment. These muscles mainly act to:

- supinate the forearm at the radioulnar joints;

- extend the hand at the radiocarpal (wrist) joint;

- abduct and adduct the hand at the radiocarpal and midcarpal joints;

- extend the thumb and fingers at their interphalangeal and metacarpophalangeal joints;

- abduct the thumb at the first carpometacarpal joint.

For classification purposes, the muscles of the posterior compartment of the forearm can be arbitrarily divided into two distinct groups:

- muscles of the superficial part of posterior compartment of forearm;

- muscles of the deep part of posterior compartment of forearm.