Calcification of the tendon, and osteophytes ("bone spurs") in the intertubercular groove can be apparent on x-rays.

The pectoralis major, teres major, and latissimus dorsi insert at the intertubercular groove of the humerus.

As the Latissimus Dorsi inserts into the floor of the intertubercular groove of the humerus it is surrounded by two major muscles.

The Teres Major inserts medially on the medial lip of the intertubercular groove and laterally the Pectoralis Major inserts into the lateral lip.

It converts the intertubercular groove into a canal, and is the homologue of the strong process of bone which connects the summits of the two tubercles in the musk ox.

When the humerus is in motion, the tendon of the long head is held firmly in place in the intertubercular groove by the greater and lesser tubercles and the overlying transverse humeral ligament.

The posterior lamina reaches higher on the humerus than the anterior one, and from it an expansion is given off which covers the intertubercular groove of the humerus and blends with the capsule of the shoulder-joint.

From the deepest fibers of this lamina at its insertion an expansion is given off which lines the intertubercular groove, while from the lower border of the tendon a third expansion passes downward to the fascia of the arm.

The tubercles are separated from each other by a deep groove, the intertubercular groove (bicipital groove), which lodges the long tendon of the biceps brachii muscle and transmits a branch of the anterior humeral circumflex artery to the shoulder-joint.