Lateral plantar nerve

The lateral plantar nerve (also external plantar nerve, Latin: nervus plantaris lateralis) is one of the terminal branches of the tibial nerve.

The lateral plantar nerve passes obliquely forward between the flexor digitorum brevis and quadratus plantae muscles to the lateral side of the foot. Near the abductor digiti minimi the lateral plantar nerve splits into a superficial and a deep branch.

The superficial branch of the lateral plantar nerve gives off the common plantar digital nerves that split into three proper digital plantar nerves to innervate the flexor digiti minimi brevis, the lumbrical muscles and the plantar skin of the fourth and fifth toes.

The deep branch of the lateral plantar nerve innervates the adductor hallucis, opponens digiti minimi, quadratus plantae, plantar interossei and dorsal interossei muscles.

The lateral plantar nerve supplies the skin in the lateral half of the fourth toe and the fifth toe, and most of the deep muscles of the foot.