Which nerve is commonly injured with fracture of the fibular neck?

• A. Tibial
• B. Deep fibular
• C. Sural
• D. Common fibular

Answer: (D)

The nerve most at risk when the fibular neck is fractured is the one that wraps around the neck of the fibula. This nerve runs superficially at the lateral knee, right where the fracture often occurs, making it particularly vulnerable to injury.

If this nerve is damaged, its two main branches—the superficial and the deep—are affected. The superficial branch supplies the muscles that evert the foot, while the deep branch supplies the muscles that dorsiflex the ankle and extend the toes. So, injury here commonly leads to foot drop and weakness in eversion, with sensory loss over the dorsum of the foot and the lateral leg.

The tibial nerve stays in the posterior compartment and is not typically injured by a fracture at the fibular neck. The deep fibular nerve is a branch of the common fibular nerve, and while it can be affected if the injury is proximal, the most characteristic and likely injury is to the common fibular nerve itself. The sural nerve is primarily a sensory nerve in the posterior leg and is not the typical structure injured by a neck fracture.