cricothyroid muscle


cri·co·thy·roid mus·cle

[TA] intrinsic laryngeal muscle; origin, anterior surface of arch of cricoid; insertion, the anterior or straight part passes upward to ala of thyroid; the posterior or oblique part passes more outward to inferior horn of thyroid; action, acts at cricothyroid joint, pulling anterior aspects of thyroid and cricoid cartilages together, rotating the superior portion of the cricoid lamina and arytenoid cartilages posteriorly, causing vocal folds to tense, increasing the pitch of voice tone; the antagonist of this movement is the thyroarytenoid muscle; nerve supply, external laryngeal branch of superior laryngeal nerve (from vagus). Synonym(s): musculus cricothyroideus [TA]

cri·co·thy·roid mus·cle

(krī'kō-thī'royd mŭs'ĕl) [TA] Origin, anterior surface of arch of cricoid; insertion, the anterior or straight part passes upward to ala of thyroid; the posterior or oblique part passes more outward to inferior horn of thyroid; action, makes vocal folds tense, increasing the pitch of voice tone; nerve supply, external laryngeal branch of superior laryngeal nerve (from vagus).
Synonym(s): musculus cricothyroideus [TA] .

cricothyroid muscle

Laryngeal muscle. Origin: cricoid cartilage. Insertion: lower edges of thyroid cartilage. Nerve: superior laryngeal of the vagus (CN X). Action: tenses (stretches) vocal cords See: thyroidfor illus.See also: muscle