Popliteal artery

The popliteal artery is defined as that extension of the superficial femoral artery which extends through the adductor canal above the knee to the so-called "trifurcation" of the resultant artery below the knee into the anterior tibial, posterior tibial and peroneal arteries. In fact, the trifurcation is a misnomer as the anterior tibial artery branches off the end of the popliteal artery first. The resultant trunk which then splits into the posterior tibial and peroneal arteries is called, sensibly, the tibioperoneal trunk.

Interestingly, the popliteal artery is derived from the fetal sciatic artery, a completely different system than the femoral artery which feeds it in the fully-formed human.