This artery (A. metatarsea dorsalis lateralis) is the direct
continuation of the anterior tibial. It passes downward and outward
under the extensor brevis and the tendon of the lateral extensor, at
first on the joint capsule and then in the oblique vascular groove on
the upper part of the large metatarsal bone. It then descends in the
groove formed by the apposition of the large and external small
metatarsals, inclines inward between the two, and divides on the lower
part of the posterior face of the large metatarsal bone into the
internal and external digital arteries. It is not usually accompanied by
a vein. Beyond this the arterial arrangement is the same as in the
thoracic limb.