CHAPTER

The Muscular System

10 Axial Musculature

Introduction
Axial muscles are attached to components of the axial skeleton. They make up over half of all
skeletal muscles and are responsible for generating movements of the head, vertebral column,
and ribs.
The axial musculature has components that are easy to remember, such as facial expres-
sions (frowning, pouting, whistling, and knitting and furrowing the brow, which involve
mostly superficial muscles), and some that are much more challenging, such as movements of
the neck and throat or the torso, which have many layers associated with them. Dissection can
be a helpful confirmation of lecture material and is highly recommended for investigating the
differences between superficial and deep muscles.

Chapter Learning Outcomes

1. Describe the location and function of the four groups of axial muscles.
2. Identify the six subgroups of the muscles of the head and neck and explain how they dif-
fer in their origins, insertions, actions, and innervations.
3. List the three layers of the muscles of the vertebral column and explain how the muscles
differ in their origins, insertions, actions, and innervations.
4. Identify the muscles of the oblique and rectus groups and explain how they differ in their
origins, insertions, actions, and innervations.
5. Name the muscles of the perineum and pelvic diaphragm and explain how they differ in
their origins, insertions, actions, and innervations.

Teaching Strategies
1. Lecture Ideas
a. Students are often hesitant to practice verbally naming or identifying the muscles.
They are afraid that if they say a name incorrectly, they will embarrass themselves.
Reassure students that they are all in the same boat and, as with learning any new lan-
guage, mistakes are bound to occur. When pronouncing names during lecture, it is also
helpful to point out to students the correct pronunciation and the most commonly heard
mispronunciations.
b. It is a good idea to tell students to review skeletal anatomy from Chapters 6, 7, and 8 in
the textbook prior to the lecture or lab on axial musculature.
Copyright © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. 41
 c. Prior to covering the axial skeleton in lecture, consider how you wish to organize this
content. One approach is to simply cover those axial muscles that you feel are appro-
priate for your class. Another approach is to group the muscles by location and func-
tion (e.g., muscles of the head and neck, muscles of the vertebral column).
d. When teaching about the internal and external oblique muscles and internal and exter-
nal intercostal muscles, remember to emphasize intercostal; inter means “in between.”
This prefix is repeatedly used throughout anatomy. It is like an interstate highway that
runs between multiple states. Intercostal muscles are “between” the ribs (costal mean-
ing “rib”). It is also helpful to point out that external oblique and intercostal muscles
are parallel in direction, and the internal oblique and intercostal muscles are parallel
and opposite to the externals. This comparison also reviews the different terms of
anatomical position, such as superior (intercostal area) and inferior (abdominal area).
2. Analogies
a. The corrugator supercilii muscle is a fun one to linguistically dissect with students.
Corrugator reminds one of corrugated cardboard or metal. Have pieces of cardboard
handy in order to show students the rippled layer in the middle, which adds rigidity.
Most people have seen this, or they have seen corrugated metal roofs that are ridged
or furrowed. Have students contract their corrugator and see how it makes the space
between the brow ripple, making frown lines or “knitting the brow.” Supercilii: super
meaning “above” (Superman flying above the city); and cilia, as seen in Chapter 2,
relating to the hairlike projections on the surface of the cells. What hair is on every-
one’s face? Eyebrows. So students can remember that the corrugator supercilii are
located above the eyebrows. This is a good exercise, literally, to practice the applica-
tion of the Latin terms.
b. Most people know what a serrated knife looks like, but having one, or a photo of one,
to demonstrate is helpful. Serrated means “toothed,” as the serratus muscles appear
to be.
3. Demonstrations
a. Ask students to say the names of muscles out loud, or ask them to write the names
down. You can make a game out of it by dividing the class into groups (odd numbered
rows vs. even numbered rows, etc.) and having the groups alternate calling out muscles
by region within a specified amount of time (e.g., 15- to 30-second intervals). An
extra-credit point could be awarded to each member of the group with the highest
number of correctly named muscles. This works most easily with a smaller group, but
can be effectively administered if you have the assistance of undergraduate teaching
assistants.
4. Common Student Misconceptions/Problems
a. Students often confuse the rectus and oblique muscles that are extrinsic muscles of the
eye with the rectus and oblique muscles affiliated with the abdominal muscles. One
approach to teaching about these is to postpone the discussion of the eye muscles until
covering the special senses. Focusing on teaching students about the internal and
external obliques of the abdomen first helps students establish a clear association of
these abdominal muscles before looking at those of the eye.
b. Students also often confuse the rectus femoris of the anterior leg with the biceps femo-
ris of the posterior leg. Remind students that the rectus abdominis is on the anterior;
similarly, the rectus femoris is on the anterior of the leg as well. This automatically

42 INSTRUCTOR'S MANUAL FOR HUMAN ANATOMY, 8e Copyright © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc.
 places the biceps femoris in the opposing and proper position on the reverse side of the
leg in the students’ minds.
c. In this text, students will see the frontalis and occipitalis muscles labeled together as
the occipitofrontalis muscle, a muscle connected by the epicranial aponeurosis. Other
texts and materials may refer to them separately, as listed above. Either is acceptable,
and students should be familiar with both usages. The epicranial aponeurosis has
previously been referred to as the galea aponeurotica. This was changed fairly re-
cently in an effort to move to a modern usage of more descriptive terms. Epi- (“upon”)
and cranial “head” are combined to indicate the location of this thin flat sheet of
connective tissue.
d. Students frequently confuse semispinalis capitis with the splenius capitis. A quick
way to differentiate the two is that the semispinalis is closest to the spine (which is in
its name) and the splenius leans—it is oblique. So, one is erect and parallel—the
semispinalis; the other leans and inserts on the more lateral part of the skull—the
splenius.
e. The axial skeleton acts as an origin for many muscles that attach to the appendages and
head. The origin generally refers to the stationary part of muscle and the insertion
generally refers to the mobile end of a muscle as it flexes. This general definition of
origin and insertion runs into some trouble when the movement resulting from the
contraction of a muscle varies depending on which end of the muscle is stabilized. For
instance, if one is lying supine on the floor and the movement involves bending at the
waist (as in doing a sit-up), the origin of the rectus abdominis is on the pubic bones,
and insertion is the xiphoid process and ribs 5–7. However, if one is lying supine on
the floor and the movement is elevating the hips off of the ground, the origin and inser-
tion would appear to switch. This is true for numerous muscles of the trunk, head, and
neck areas. The terms (origin and insertion) are a convenience only; if a student knows
where the ends of the muscle are attached and can describe the movements, that’s the
important part.
5. Vocabulary Aids
a. The platysma muscle shares the root word of platy with the duck-billed platypus,
meaning “flat”-billed. This is a flat, sheetlike muscle close to the mouth, inferior to the
mandible. Using the example of the platypus can help the students in two ways—
remembering it is flat and also near the mouth as in the bill of the platypus.
b. A sheath is a “covering or wrapping.” The rectus sheath contains and wraps around
the rectus abdominis; the other layers of abdominals insert on that sheath in three lay-
ers. This is difficult for students to picture. Figure 10.11c in the text, which is a cross
section through the trunk, helps students to understand the three overlapping layers of
external and internal obliques and transverse abdominis and how they insert onto that
sheath. Most students will skip right over this diagram, so it is important to go over it
with them. The rectus abdominis is divided into sections with short segments of
tendons in between, which are described as inscriptions or tendinous intersections.
People who do body building refer to this as the six-pack; they pop out individually in
sections like a six-pack of beverage.
c. The suffix -oid is a widely used suffix derived from Latin “-oides” or Greek “-eides”
that mean “resembling or having the likeness of.” Most of the anterior muscles of the
neck have this suffix, and as a group are difficult for students to master. Just naming
the sternohyoid, sternothyroid, stylohyoid, and thyrohyoid causes students’ eyes to

Copyright © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc. CHAPTER 10 The Muscular System: Axial Musculature 43
 glaze over only seconds after beginning this litany. BUT the components of the words
are a road map for their attachment sites. The sternohyoid attaches to the sternum and
the hyoid bone, the sternothyroid attaches to the sternum and the thyroid cartilage, the
stylohyoid attaches to the styloid process and the hyoid bone, and the thyrohyoid
attaches to the thyroid cartilage and the hyoid bone.

44 INSTRUCTOR'S MANUAL FOR HUMAN ANATOMY, 8e Copyright © 2015 Pearson Education, Inc.