Thigh fasciotomy

For thigh fasciotomy, a single, generous lateral incision is made that originates from a point just distal to the intertrochanteric line and extends to the lateral epicondyle of the femur. Through this incision, the iliotibial band and fascia of the vastus lateralis are incised the full length of the skin incision to decompress the anterior compartment. The posterior compartment is decompressed by reflecting the vastus lateralis muscle medially to expose the lateral intermuscular septum, which is incised the length of the skin incision.