Epaxial muscles
Musculi epaxiales
- Latin synonym: Musculi dorsi proprii
- Synonym: Muscles of back proper; Deep back muscles, True back muscles
Definition
The epaxial and hypaxial muscles of the back are defined as muscles innervated by the dorsal and ventral rami of spinal nerves, respectively.
The epaxial muscles (supplied by posterior rami) are regarded as the only true back muscles. They contain:
In this sense the musculi intertransversarii anteriores, musculi posteriores laterales cervicis, and musculi intertransversarii laterales lumborum, being hypaxial muscles and homologues of musculi levatores costarum and being supplied by rami anteriores are not true back muscles.
References
Terminologia Anatomica 2
