MYONET - Atlas Musculature Orofacial System

Atlas Musculature: Area IX

Erhard Thiele     037e

Atlas Musculature Inventory

MYONET.TOTAL PROGR CONTENTS

It has repeatedly been mentioned in the text of the previously described areas how strongly these are influencing each other, or, in other words, how haphazardly the classification and differentiation seems made. On the contrary this is obligatory from reasons of comprehensibility. Under this aspect for example the adductor muscles of the mandible has its influence upon the back muscles. (See also the below depicted back muscle fields). It may be seen as significant that within the last decades the field outlined by the Myofunctional Therapy at first has been termed the stomatognathic system, soon, then, enlarged as the orofacial system followed by the craniofacial system and presently belong the cervicocranial system.  It has become apparent It has shown that too narrowly defined boundaries prove rather impedimental. The acquaintance of the back musculature is, for example, important for diagnosis and therapy of TM-joint, swallowing or breathing disorders. However, an elaborate description of the area IX is not to follow here; a hint might be the internet link to readily accessible sources of special literature.

http://www.physiopaed.de/anatomie.htm or www.anatomie-online.com  .

For the muscles of the dorsum the following descriptions and illustrations will just serve as a synoptic view:

Atlas and Axis (nodder and rotator) are the two up most vertebrae of the column. This column of vertebrae with the surrounding tendons and muscles is often compared with a rope ladder, when the up most step is moved the bottom one moves as well. This is why we it is necessary for us to have at least a rough idea of the setup of the musculature of this region. We all too rarely realize that the insertions of the chewing and tongue muscles are situated directly next to those of the back reaching down till the pelvis and that not just occasionally and without any relevance. Lots of our cases show the image of an nonphysiological spinal column curvature.

We are not going to discuss to what extent the disorders in the spine and in the orofacial musculature have started or enhanced each other. We should to take note of the fact that muscular conceptions of causal relation exist and therefore must be integrated into our surveys. Under out therapy in the craniocervical region we will notice improvements in the body posture. Of course we might also try to facilitate our work applying physiotherapeutic therapy simultaneously either ourselves or in co-therapy depending on our qualification. In order to be able to answer questions about the 'why' and the muscular connections we would have to become acquainted with the great diversity of the musculature of the spinal cord. And precisely this situation reflects the importance of an expanded view of Myofunctional Therapy beyond  the orofacial frame.

Figuratively seen each vertebra is practically connected to every other over the whole length of the spine - over the short section or the long distance and that in several aspects. There can only be given a hint towards the relevant specialized literature which has also been cited here.

Muscle Exercises:  Back Exercises should be reserved for the subject literature. Here two hints in the form of links towards respective internet pages: