College students discover new muscle attachment that could improve hip surgery

Two Tulane University undergraduates found a previously undescribed muscle attachment deep in the pelvis while dissecting cadavers. The discovery, published in *Clinical Anatomy*, may matter for hip surgery because the fibres attach to the front of the hip joint and could be relevant to some patients’ symptoms or rehabilitation.

The muscle runs towards the front of the hip, but researchers have not yet established what it does or how often it occurs. They found it in some, but not all, human cadavers, and also observed it in gorillas. Further research will test whether MRI scans can detect it and whether treatment such as physiotherapy, injections or surgery could help in particular cases.