Axial

Question: What bones are included in the axial skeleton?
Answer: The axial skeleton includes the bones of the skull, sternum, ribs, vertebrae, sacrum, coccyx, and other associated bones in this part of the skeleton.

Question: What must axial muscles attach to?
Answer: Axial muscles must attach to features of the axial skeleton.

Question: What do axial muscles do?
Answer: Axial muscles help position the head, move and position the spinal column, and move the ribcage.

Question: What are the four main categories of axial muscles?
Answer: The four main categories are head and neck muscles, vertebral column muscles, rib cage and body wall muscles, and pelvic floor muscles.

Question: What should you focus on when studying axial muscles?
Answer: You should focus on their main locations and primary functions instead of memorizing every attachment point.

Question: Which muscles of facial expression should you focus on?
Answer: You should focus on the occipitofrontalis, orbicularis oculi, orbicularis oris, zygomaticus major and minor, and platysma.

Question: What is an important neck muscle to know?
Answer: An important neck muscle to know is the sternocleidomastoid.

Question: What should you know about the sternocleidomastoid?
Answer: You should know its bilateral and unilateral functions.

Question: Where is the buccinator muscle located?
Answer: The buccinator muscle is located in the cheeks, which form the walls of the mouth.

Question: What does the buccinator muscle do during chewing?
Answer: It helps circulate food around the mouth while chewing and keeps the cheeks tight so you do not bite the inside wall of the mouth.

Question: What does the buccinator muscle help with when drinking?
Answer: It helps generate suction when drinking through a straw.

Question: Why is the buccinator called the “trumpeter” muscle?
Answer: It distends outward when someone plays the trumpet, and the name “buccinator” translates as trumpeter.

Question: What are extraocular muscles?
Answer: Extraocular muscles are the muscles that physically move the eyeball.

Question: What should you know about the extraocular muscles?
Answer: You should know their names and how each one moves the eyeball in a specific direction.

Question: What is the technical term for chewing?
Answer: The technical term for chewing is mastication.

Question: What are the main chewing muscles?
Answer: The main chewing muscles are the masseter, temporalis, and pterygoids.

Question: What is the main function of the chewing muscles?
Answer: They mostly elevate the mandible so the biting surfaces of the teeth come closer together to crush food.

Question: What naming pattern do tongue muscles usually have?
Answer: Tongue muscles usually have “-glossus” in their names.

Question: What do tongue muscles help with?
Answer: They help with mechanical breakdown of food and swallowing.

Question: Do you need to memorize the tongue muscles?
Answer: No. You do not need to memorize them.

Question: What naming pattern do throat wall muscles usually have?
Answer: Throat wall muscles usually have “-pharyngeus” in their names.

Question: What do throat wall muscles do?
Answer: They move food from the mouth into the esophagus.

Question: Do you need to memorize the throat wall muscles?
Answer: No. You do not need to memorize them.

Question: What terms should you know for muscles that move the skull and vertebral column?
Answer: You should know bilateral contraction, unilateral contraction, ipsilateral movement, and contralateral movement.

Question: What is bilateral contraction?
Answer: Bilateral contraction occurs when paired muscles pull equally on both sides of the body.

Question: What is unilateral contraction?
Answer: Unilateral contraction occurs when one side contracts more than the other side.

Question: What does ipsilateral mean?
Answer: Ipsilateral means “same side.”

Question: What is ipsilateral movement?
Answer: Ipsilateral movement means the body moves toward the same side where the contraction occurred.

Question: What does contralateral mean?
Answer: Contralateral means “opposite side.”

Question: What is contralateral movement?
Answer: Contralateral movement means the body moves toward the opposite side from where the contraction occurred.

Question: What should you know about the sternocleidomastoid muscle?
Answer: You should know its bilateral and unilateral actions.

Question: What are the main suprahyoid muscles?
Answer: The main suprahyoid muscles are the digastric, mylohyoid, and stylohyoid.

Question: What do the suprahyoid muscles do?
Answer: They elevate and fixate the hyoid bone and larynx in the neck.

Question: What are the main infrahyoid muscles?
Answer: The main infrahyoid muscles are the sternohyoid, omohyoid, sternothyroid, and thyrohyoid.

Question: What do the infrahyoid muscles do?
Answer: They depress and fixate the hyoid bone and larynx in the neck.

Question: What are the erector spinae muscles?
Answer: The erector spinae muscles are a group of three vertical columns of muscle running up and down the back.

Question: What are the three erector spinae muscles from lateral to medial?
Answer: From lateral to medial, they are the iliocostalis, longissimus, and spinalis.

Question: Which erector spinae column attaches to portions of the ribcage?
Answer: The iliocostalis column has segments that attach to portions of the ribcage.

Question: What should you know about the erector spinae group?
Answer: You should know its bilateral and unilateral actions.

Question: Where are the splenius muscles found?
Answer: The splenius muscles are found along the back of the neck.

Question: What should you know about the splenius muscles?
Answer: You should know their bilateral and unilateral actions.

Question: Where are the scalene muscles located?
Answer: The scalene muscles are found in the deep anterior and lateral neck.

Question: What are the three scalene muscles?
Answer: The three scalene muscles are the anterior, middle, and posterior scalenes.

Question: What can the scalene muscles help with?
Answer: They can assist with forced inspiration, stabilize the cervical spine, or laterally flex the cervical spine.

Question: Where do the roots of the brachial plexus emerge?
Answer: The roots of the brachial plexus emerge between the anterior and middle scalene muscles.

Question: What are intercostal muscles?
Answer: Intercostal muscles are thin layers of muscle found between adjacent ribs.

Question: What are the main examples of intercostal muscles?
Answer: The main examples are the external intercostals and internal intercostals.

Question: What do the external intercostals do?
Answer: The external intercostals assist with forced inspiration.

Question: What do the internal intercostals do?
Answer: The internal intercostals assist with forced expiration.

Question: What are the main abdominal wall muscles?
Answer: The main abdominal wall muscles are the external oblique, internal oblique, rectus abdominis, and transversus abdominis.

Question: What are the common functions of the abdominal wall muscles?
Answer: They flex the torso and compress the torso, which tightens the abdominal wall.

Question: What does the diaphragm do during inspiration?
Answer: During inspiration, the diaphragm contracts and descends to allow the lungs to expand.

Question: What does the diaphragm do during expiration?
Answer: During expiration, the diaphragm relaxes and ascends to allow the lungs to contract.

Question: What can weakness of the pelvic floor muscles lead to?
Answer: Weakness of the pelvic floor muscles can lead to urinary incontinence, or urinary leakage.