Femoral ring

The femoral ring is the superior opening of the femoral canal. Its boundaries are:

• medial: lacunar ligament
• anterior: medial part of the inguinal ligament
• lateral: femoral vein within the intermediate compartment of the femoral sheath
• posterior: pectineal ligament overlying the pectineus muscle and its fascia covering the superior pubic ramus

Related pathology

Femoral hernias occur through the femoral ring into the femoral canal. As three of the four boundaries of the femoral ring are either ligamentous or osseous, the ring is unforgiving which explains the high risk for incarceration of femoral hernias.