Levatores costarum muscles

Levatores costarum muscles

Deep muscles of the back. (Levatores costarum labeled vertically at center left.)
Details
Latin Musculi levatores costarum
Transverse processes of C7 to T12 vertebrae
Superior surfaces of the ribs immediately inferior to the preceding vertebrae
dorsal rami C8-T11 (Intercostal nerves)
Actions Assists in elevation of the thoracic rib cage
Identifiers
Gray's p.403
Dorlands
/Elsevier		 m_22/12549574
TA A04.4.01.009
FMA 71312
Anatomical terms of muscle

The Levatores costarum, (/ˌlɛvəˈtɔəriːz kəˈstɛərəm/) twelve in number on either side, are small tendinous and fleshy bundles, which arise from the ends of the transverse processes of the seventh cervical and upper eleven thoracic vertebrae

They pass obliquely downward and laterally, like the fibers of the Intercostales externi, and each is inserted into the outer surface of the rib immediately below the vertebra from which it takes origin, between the tubercle and the angle (Levatores costarum breves).

Each of the four lower muscles divides into two fasciculi, one of which is inserted as above described; the other passes down to the second rib below its origin (Levatores costarum longi).

Their role in normal inspiration, if any, is uncertain. They may play a role in vertebral movement and/or proprioception.

See also

References

This article incorporates text in the public domain from the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)

External links