Cricothyroid
Head & throat
Deep muscle — it lies under other muscles. X-ray makes the muscles over it see-through.
- Origin
- Front and side of the cricoid cartilage
- Insertion
- Straight part: lower border of the thyroid cartilage plate; oblique part: inferior horn of the thyroid cartilage
- Action
- Tilts the thyroid cartilage forward, lengthening and tensing the vocal folds
- Nerve supply
- External laryngeal nerve (CN X)
The only intrinsic laryngeal muscle on the outside of the larynx, with a straight and an oblique part. By stretching the vocal folds it raises the pitch of the voice.
Cricothyroid anatomy page →