We analyzed anatomic distribution of the radial nerve in the upper arms in Chinese-adult embalmed cadavers (120 nerves in 60 cadavers) and compared it with findings reported for Caucasian adults. The acromion, the medial epicondyle, and the lateral epicondyle were used as bony landmarks. We used previously described techniques to quantitatively describe the location of the radial nerve in relation to the surrounding skeleton. Courses of the radial nerve relative to the humeral shaft in Chinese subjects differed from those previously reported for Caucasian subjects. The parameters that differed from Caucasians were: the distances from the acromion to the upper margin (147 +/- 21 mm versus 124 +/- 12 mm), the acromion to the lower margin (195 +/- 36 mm versus 176 +/- 17 mm), and the medial epicondyle to the lower margin (111 +/- 21 mm versus 131 +/- 10 mm). Our study provides information to help identify the radial nerve during surgery and elucidates racial differences in the distribution of the radial nerve between Chinese and Caucasian populations.