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Platysma
Muscle parts
mandibular part, labial part, and modilolar part
Latin name
Musculus platysma
Latin muscle parts
pars mandibularis, pars labialis, pars modiolaris
Group
Branchial arch muscle – second arch (Muscle of neck)
Etymology
The English name for this muscle is the wide muscle. The word platysma comes from the Greek platus for “wide.”
Origin
Fascia over the upper anterior thorax and deltoid muscle
Insertion
Fibers interdigitate with opposite muscle at the midline of the mandible, they attach to the body of the mandible, blend with muscles near the angle of the mouth, and insert into the skin over the mandible
Action
Activity in this large sheet of muscle tenses the skin over the neck reducing the concavity between the bottom of the jaw and the neck. Its medial mandibular fibers assist other muscles in depressing the mandible. The intermediate labial fibers assist other muscles in depressing the inferior lip. The lateral modiolar fibers help pull the angle of the mouth downward and laterally. During sudden, forceful inspiratory activity, the muscle becomes active, possibly elevating the cervical fascia and adjacent pleural cupola to help expand the pleural cavity.
Nerve supply
Facial nerve (Cranial nerve VII)
Blood supply
Submental branch of the facial artery; superior thyroid artery; superficial cervical artery; upper sternal branches of the internal thoracic artery.