Anatomy of the larynx and trachea

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Anatomy of the larynx and trachea

Neck

Anatomy of the larynx and trachea

Anatomy of the lymphatics of the neck

Anatomy of the pharynx and esophagus

Anatomy of the thyroid and parathyroid glands

Bones of the neck

Deep structures of the neck: Prevertebral muscles

Deep structures of the neck: Root of the neck

Fascia and spaces of the neck

Superficial structures of the neck: Anterior triangle

Superficial structures of the neck: Cervical plexus

Superficial structures of the neck: Posterior triangle

Neck

Anatomy clinical correlates: Bones, fascia and muscles of the neck

Anatomy clinical correlates: Vessels, nerves and lymphatics of the neck

Anatomy clinical correlates: Viscera of the neck

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Anatomy of the larynx and trachea

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Figure 1: Cartilaginous skeleton of the Larynx and Trachea A. anterior view and B. posterior view.

Figure 2: Cartilaginous skeleton of the Larynx and Trachea A. lateral view and B. with hemisected thyroid cartilage.

Figure 3: Neurovasculature of the Larynx and trachea A. Arteries and nerves and B. veins.

Figure 4: the Laryngeal cavity, mid-sagittal view.

Figure 5: Anatomy of the vocal Ligaments, superior view A. superficial and B. deep.

Muscle	Origin	Insertion	Innervation	Action
Cricothyroid muscle	anterolateral part of the cricoid cartilage	inferior margin and inferior horn of the thyroid cartilage.	Superior laryngeal nerve External laryngeal nerve	tilts/pulls prominence of thyroid cartilage anteriorly and inferiorly elongates and tightens vocal ligaments raises the pitch of voice
Thyro-arytenoid muscle	lower half of the posterior aspect of the thyroid cartilage and cricothyroid ligament	anterolateral arytenoid surface	Recurrent laryngeal nerve via inferior laryngeal nerve	pulls the arytenoid cartilages anteriorly lowers the pitch of the voice
Lateral cricoarytenoid muscle	arch of cricoid cartilage	vocal process of arytenoid cartilage		pulls the muscular processes of arytenoid cartilages anteriorly and rotates them to adduct the vocal folds
Transverse arytenoid muscle	ipsilateral arytenoid cartilage	contralateral arytenoid cartilage		pulls the arytenoid cartilages together causing adduction of vocal folds reflexive sphincter
Oblique arytenoid muscle	ipsilateral arytenoid cartilage	contralateral arytenoid cartilage
Posterior cricoarytenoid muscle	posterior surface of the cricoid cartilage lamina	vocal process of arytenoid cartilage		rotates the vocal processes of the arytenoid cartilages laterally to abduct the vocal folds widens the rima glottidis
Vocalis muscle	lateral surface of the vocal process of the arytenoid cartilage	ipsilateral vocal ligament		tenses and relaxes the vocal ligaments and folds
Trachealis muscle	Spans posterior gaps in tracheal ring		para-sympathetic ganglia	allows expansion of the esophagus during swallowing

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Content Reviewers

Scott Caterine, BSc (Hons.), MSc, MB, BCh, BAO (Hons.),Viviana Popa, MD

Contributors

Alexandru Duhaniuc, MD,Sam Gillespie, BSc,Tina Collins,Elizabeth Nixon-Shapiro, MSMI, CMI

The cervical viscera are composed of three layers named after their primary function.

The most superficial layer is the endocrine layer which contains the thyroid and parathyroid glands, then there’s the respiratory layer which contains the larynx and trachea and finally, the deepest layer is the alimentary layer which contains the pharynx and esophagus.

Focusing on the respiratory layer of the cervical viscera, this contains the larynx and trachea that routes air to the lungs, and gives everyone their own unique voice and saying that just made me aware of my own voice on this video recording!

So, let’s start with the larynx which is responsible for voice production and maintaining a patent airway.

The larynx is located in the anterior neck at the level of the bodies of the C3 to C6 vertebrae and connects the inferior part of the pharynx with the trachea. It also contains the vocal cords, or vocal folds, so it’s responsible for voice production.

Now, the larynx has a skeleton which is hardly a skeleton; rather, it’s formed of nine cartilages: thyroid, cricoid and epiglottic cartilages which are single and arytenoid, corniculate and cuneiform cartilages which come in pairs of two.

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Anatomy of the larynx and trachea

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Anatomy of the larynx and trachea

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