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Posterior cricoarytenoid muscle (anatomy)

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The posterior cricoarytenoid is one of the muscles of the vocal folds.

On each side, it arises from the posterior surface of the lamina of the cricoid cartilage. It inserts into the ipsilateral muscular process of the arytenoid cartilage.

It has two actions on the arytenoid cartilages to open the rima glottidis by abducting the vocal folds:

  • abduct the cartilages away from each other; mainly via vertical fibres
  • laterally rotate the cartilages about their vertical axis; mainly via the horizontal fibres

The posterior cricoarytenoid muscle is innervated by the recurrent laryngeal nerve.


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The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

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