The scalenes (sing. scalenus) are muscles in the neck. They
include four paired muscles called:
* scalenus anterior
* scalenus medius
* scalenus minimus
* scalenus posterior
Together they extend from the cervical vertebrae down to the first and
second ribs.
They raise the first and second ribs during inspiration, and they can
bend the neck both forwards, and to each side.
This is one of the muscles of the head, neck, and face that is included
on the syllabus of many courses in Indian
Head Massage. As this is an increasingly popular therapy we have
added several revision pages that may be helpful to students of Indian
Head Massage. See for example, the page about Skeletal
Structures of the Head and Neck.
To view the location of the scalenes muscles,
see the page about Facial
Muscles.
Note that this page consists of an interactive (rather than a simply labelled)
diagram, so you'll have to test yourself by guessing which muscles are the scalenes until
you find the correct label. It's a fun way to learn ! To view the locations of
further muscles located around the scalenes, see also the page about Posterior
Muscles or the page about
Anterior
Muscles.
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