Themes > Science > Life Sciences > General Biology > Physiology > Human Body > Muscles Menu > The Shoulder

VFront and back views of the shoulder
..Latissimus
..Levator scapulae
..Pectoralis Minor Entrapment of Brachial Nerve
..Pectoralis major
..Pectoralis minor pain referral zone
..Rhomboids
It seldom occurs to us, if we knew it at all, that the arm and shoulder structure is attached to the rest of the body skeletally at only one joint: the sternoclavicular joint, which is the joint of the clavicle (collarbone) with the sternum (breastbone). That's those two knobby protrusions on the upper chest just under the throat. The only other connections of the arm and shoulder are by means of soft tissue-- muscles,tendons, ligaments and fascia. This design gives us tremendous freedom and range of motion in our arms and shoulders, but it also presents challenges and dangers for the soft tissues involved.
The shoulder muscles can be divided into two groups:
  • 1) Muscles that act on the arm:
            ..Rotator cuff:

    Pectoralis major

    Latissimus dorsi

    Teres major

    Deltoids

    2) Muscles that act on the scapula (shoulderblade):

      • Trapezius   -   trapezius upper back & shoulder pain   -   muscles of the posterior neck   -   trapezius neck pain referral zones
      • Pectoralis minor
      • Corachobrachialis
      • Biceps brachii
      • Triceps brachii
      • Major and minor rhomboids
      • Levator scapulae:   Pain Referral & Therapy 

The one muscle left over is the subclavius, which stabilizes the sternoclavicular joint. There are many other muscles which are in the region of the shoulder and which affect it, of course, but they are not, strictly speaking, shoulder muscles:

serratus posterior superior, scalenes, serratus anterior, iliocostalis thoracis, etc.


Information provided by: http://danke.com