Home » Anatomy » Neck Muscles » Splenius Cervicis – Functional Anatomy

Splenius Cervicis – Functional Anatomy

Overview

Here, you will find the anatomy and physiology of the splenius cervicis muscle.

Splenius Cervicis – Posterior View
Downloadable on Etsy

Splenius cervicis is a broad, flat muscle that wraps around the lateral neck. It anchors in the upper thoracic vertebrae and inserts on the upper cervical vertebrae. This makes it a “jack of all trades, master of none,” as it assists in extension, rotation, side-bending, and strapping things down.

Splenius Cervicis – Lateral View
Downloadable on Etsy

Origin

  • spinous processes of T3-T6

Insertion

  • the transverse processes of C1-C3

Function

  • unilaterally, this muscle is involved in rotation and side-bending of the neck.
  • bilaterally, these muscles extend the neck.
Splenii muscles Lateral View
Downloadable on Etsy

Attachment Details

The splenii muscles have a long attachment along the center of the spine. Inferiorly, this sheet of muscle anchors from about C4 on the nuchal ligament to the spinous process of T6.

They form a broad, flat veneer of muscle that splits to become splenius capitis and splenius cervicis. This strap-like structure wraps around the lateral muscles of the neck. Along the way, the myofascial sheet divides into two sections as it extends superiorly. The splenius capitis attaches to the occipital and temporal bones while the splenius cervicis wraps around lateral neck musculature to attach to the spinous processes of C1-C3.

Splenii muscles – posterior view
Downloadable on Etsy

Functional Considerations

As you can see from the illustration, the bones of origin (in blue) form a broad base from which the head and neck can be turned and extended.

A portion of the origin attaches through the nuchal ligament to the lower cervical vertebrae. There is stability along the lower cervical vertebrae with flexibility against contralateral musculature. This flexible attachment allows for play between the stable origin on the thoracic vertebrae and the bony attachments along the upper cervical vertebrae and cranial base.

Splenii muscles over intrinsic back muscles – posterior view
Downloadable on Etsy

The Bandage

Splenii comes from a word meaning “bandage.” These muscles wrap around the deeper muscle of the lateral neck. Splenius capitis and cervicis form a “bandage” to retain those muscles.

Posts Related to Splenius Cervicis

Support Integrative Works to
stay independent
and produce great content.

You can subscribe to our community on Patreon. You will get links to free content and access to exclusive content not seen on this site. In addition, we will be posting anatomy illustrations, treatment notes, and sections from our manuals not found on this site. Thank you so much for being so supportive.

Subscribe to
IntegrativeWorks
on Patreon

If you don’t care to subscribe, you can donate.

Cranio Cradle Cup

Cranio Cradle Cup

This mug has classic, colorful illustrations of the craniosacral system and vault hold #3. It makes a great gift and conversation piece.

Tony Preston has a practice in Atlanta, Georgia, where he sees clients. He has written materials and instructed classes since the mid-90s. This includes anatomy, trigger points, cranial, and neuromuscular.

Question? Comment? Typo?
integrativeworks@gmail.com

Follow us on Instagram

Tony Preston

*This site is undergoing significant changes. We are reformatting and expanding the posts to make them easier to read. The result will also be more accessible and include more patterns with better self-care. Meanwhile, there may be formatting, content presentation, and readability inconsistencies. Until we get older posts updated, please excuse our mess.