Popliteal pulse

In order to palpate the popliteal artery, it is best to begin with your patient in a prone position with their knees fully extended. With your subject in this position, place two or three fingers over the superomedial aspect of the popliteal fossa. Next, bring your subject's knee into a partially flexed position in order to relax the structures in the posterior knee. As you flex your subject's knee, direct your fingers slightly more toward the central part of the popliteal fossa. The pulse of the popliteal artery will be felt beneath your fingers in this position and should once again be graded according to strength, rhythm and rate.