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The human body is made up of around 700 muscles that control our movement, posture, and balance. These muscles can be categorised as anterior or posterior, medial or lateral, and deep or superficial. Anterior muscles are those located at the front of the body, including the chest, neck, arm, hand, leg, and foot. An example of an anterior muscle is the serratus anterior, which is responsible for pulling the scapula forward and around the rib cage. This muscle is essential for throwing a punch or lifting something heavy overhead. Understanding the importance of anterior muscles can help us appreciate the complexity and functionality of the human body's muscular system.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Serratus anterior |
| Location | Chest |
| Origin | Side of the chest from the upper 8 or 9 ribs |
| Insertion | Entire length of the anterior aspect of the medial border of the scapula |
| Innervation | Long thoracic nerve from the brachial plexus |
| Function | Pulling the scapula forward around the thorax, protraction of the scapula, sustaining upward rotation of the scapula, allowing for overhead lifting |
| Alternative Names | Big swing muscle, boxer's muscle |
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What You'll Learn
Anterior muscles are involved in movement, posture and balance
The human body's muscular system is responsible for movement, posture, and balance. The muscles of the human body work the skeletal system and are under voluntary control. There are about 700 named muscles that make up roughly half of a person's body weight. These muscles are discrete organs constructed of skeletal muscle tissue, blood vessels, tendons, and nerves.
Anterior muscles are those that are at the front of the body or limb, as opposed to posterior muscles, which are at the back. Anterior muscles include the Achilles tendon, biceps brachii, deltoid, external oblique, gastrocnemius, latissimus dorsi, rectus abdominis, serratus anterior, soleus, sternocleidomastoid, trapezius, and triceps brachii, to name a few.
The serratus anterior muscle, for example, is a muscle of the chest. It originates at the side of the chest from the upper eight or nine ribs and inserts along the entire length of the anterior aspect of the medial border of the scapula. It is named for its shape, which resembles a saw. The serratus anterior acts to pull the scapula forward and around the thorax, which is essential for the anteversion of the arm. This muscle is also known as the "big swing muscle" or "boxer's muscle" because it is largely responsible for the protraction of the scapula, or the pulling of the scapula forward and around the rib cage that occurs when someone throws a punch.
The sternocleidomastoid muscle is another anterior muscle, located at the front of the neck. This muscle is involved in neck flexion, or the motion used to touch the chin to the chest, and it also assists in forced inhalation by flexing the neck and raising the sternum. The anterior and middle scalene muscles, which are also located at the sides of the neck, act to rotate the neck and elevate the first rib.
In summary, anterior muscles are involved in movement, posture, and balance, just like all the muscles in the human body. They are essential for a wide range of motions and functions, from throwing a punch to simply breathing.
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They are divided into deep and superficial muscles
The anterior muscles are an important part of the human body's muscular system, which is responsible for movement, posture, and balance. These muscles can be found in various parts of the body, including the forearm, chest, neck, and more.
When discussing anterior muscles, it is important to understand that they are divided into two main categories: deep muscles and superficial muscles. This classification is based on their proximity to the surface of the skin and underlying structures like bones and organs.
Superficial muscles are those that are located closer to the surface of the skin. In the context of anterior muscles, some examples of superficial muscles in the forearm include the flexor carpi ulnaris, palmaris longus, flexor carpi radialis, and pronator teres. These muscles all share a common tendon that originates from the medial epicondyle of the humerus bone in the upper arm.
On the other hand, deep muscles are found closer to the bones or internal organs. In the anterior forearm, there are three deep muscles: flexor digitorum profundus, flexor pollicis longus, and pronator quadratus. These deep muscles have important functions, such as flexing the distal interphalangeal joints of the fingers, which is unique to the flexor digitorum profundus muscle.
The serratus anterior muscle, as its name suggests, is an important anterior muscle located in the chest. This muscle is responsible for pulling the scapula (shoulder blade) forward and around the rib cage, a motion often associated with throwing a punch in boxing. The serratus anterior muscle is also divided into three parts—superior, intermediate, and inferior—based on their insertion points along the medial border of the scapula.
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The sternocleidomastoid muscle enables neck flexion and rotation
The sternocleidomastoid muscle is a two-headed neck muscle that originates at the manubrium of the sternum and the clavicle, with an insertion at the mastoid process of the temporal bone of the skull. It is a large, bilateral muscle that is easily visible and palpable, and it plays a crucial role in neck movement.
The primary function of the sternocleidomastoid muscle is to enable neck flexion and rotation. When the muscle contracts unilaterally, it flexes the cervical vertebral column to the same side and rotates the head to the opposite side. This movement is known as lateral flexion, and it involves bending the neck to the ipsilateral side. When the muscle contracts bilaterally, it elevates the head by dorsally extending the upper cervical joints, while also flexing the lower cervical column, resulting in an overall bending of the neck towards the chest.
Additionally, the sternocleidomastoid muscle assists in forced inhalation by raising the sternum and expanding the thoracic cavity. It also plays a role in defining the location of structures in the neck region, such as the lymph nodes, and serves as a landmark for medical procedures such as central venous catheterization.
The muscle is innervated by the accessory nerve (cranial nerve XI) and direct branches of the cervical plexus (C2-C3). It is closely related to neurovascular structures that pass through the neck towards the head or the periphery of the body, including the common carotid artery and brachial plexus.
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The serratus anterior is essential for arm anteversion
The serratus anterior is a muscle of the chest. It originates from the upper eight or nine ribs and inserts along the anterior surface of the medial border of the scapula. The serratus anterior acts to pull the scapula forward around the thorax, which is essential for anteversion of the arm. This muscle is also referred to as the "boxer's muscle" because it is responsible for the protraction of the scapula, which occurs when throwing a punch. The serratus anterior is innervated by the long thoracic nerve, which is vulnerable during certain types of surgery, such as lymph node clearance from the axilla for breast cancer. Damage to this nerve can lead to functional loss of the serratus anterior, causing difficulty in elevating the arm and a generally unstable shoulder.
The serratus anterior is a key scapular stabiliser, keeping the shoulder blades against the rib cage both at rest and during movement. It acts together with the upper and lower fibres of the trapezius muscle to sustain upward rotation of the scapula, allowing for overhead arm movement. The contraction of the entire serratus anterior leads to an anterolateral movement of the scapula along the ribs. The inferior part of the serratus anterior pulls the lower end of the scapula laterally and forward, rotating the scapula to enable arm elevation.
The serratus anterior has three parts: the superior, intermediate, and inferior. The superior part depresses the scapula and acts antagonistically to the other parts. The inferior part is the most prominent and powerful part of the muscle. All three parts of the serratus anterior pull the scapula forward around the thorax, and when they act together with the rhomboids, they keep the scapula pressed against the thorax. Additionally, all three parts can lift the ribs when the shoulder girdle is fixed, assisting in respiration.
The serratus anterior is a thin, fan-shaped muscle that covers the side of the rib cage. It is easily palpable between the pectoralis major and latissimus dorsi muscles, and in athletic bodies, it may even be visible to the naked eye along the ribs underneath the axilla. The serratus anterior is trained indirectly in all anterior deltoid exercises and some chest exercises that involve scapular protraction, such as plank exercises.
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Anterior forearm muscles are innervated by the median nerve
Anterior muscles are important as they are one of three types of muscles in the human body that work the skeletal system. They are under voluntary control and are concerned with movement, posture, and balance.
The anterior forearm muscles are innervated by the median nerve. The median nerve is formed by the union of the medial and lateral roots from the respective medial and lateral cords of the brachial plexus. The median nerve is responsible for the cutaneous innervation of part of the hand. It also innervates the flexor and pronator muscles in the anterior compartment of the forearm, except for the flexor carpi ulnaris and part of the flexor digitorum profundus, which are innerved by the ulnar nerve.
The median nerve directly innervates muscles in the superficial and intermediate layers of the anterior forearm. In the superficial layer, it innervates the pronator teres, flexor carpi radialis, and palmaris longus. In the intermediate layer, it innervates the flexor digitorum superficialis.
The median nerve also gives rise to the anterior interosseous nerve, which supplies the deep flexors in the anterior forearm. The deep flexors include the flexor pollicis longus, pronator quadratus, and the lateral half of the flexor digitorum profundus.
In general, these muscles in the anterior forearm are responsible for pronation of the forearm, flexion of the wrist, and flexion of the digits of the hand.
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Frequently asked questions
Anterior muscles are those that are located at the front of the human body, including the chest, neck, and limbs.
Examples of anterior muscles include the serratus anterior, the sternocleidomastoid, the flexor carpi ulnaris, and the palmaris longus.
Anterior muscles are responsible for various functions, including movement, posture, and balance. For example, the serratus anterior muscle pulls the scapula forward, which is essential for anteversion of the arm and overhead lifting. The sternocleidomastoid muscle is involved in neck flexion, neck rotation, and cervical side bending.
Anterior muscles can be classified as either superficial or deep. Superficial muscles are those that are close to the surface of the skin, while deep muscles are located closer to the bones or internal organs.
