Morphological study of the attachment of the sternocleidomastoid muscle

Abstract

In this study, we found variations in the attachment of the SCM muscle in more than a quarter of the specimens dissected. Surgeons should bear in mind such variations when performing neck surgeries.

The sternocleidomastoid muscle variations: a mini literature review

“…A macroscopical study in an Indian population, SCM variations were reported in 27.8% of studied 18 cadavers [27]. Another similar small survey with 17 cadavers from Colombia showed 11.76% prevalence of SCM variations [38].…”

“…This process of separation of the common trapezius/SCM complex could result in different forms of SCM as well as trapezius variations. SCM variations are common where accessory branches from the clavicle or sternum connect to the normally existing SCM or separately either to the mastoid process or attach laterally to the superior nuchal line towards the trapezoid muscle insertion [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27]. The variations at the insertional end of the muscle are less common in comparison to the occurrence of accessory proximal heads [15].…”

A unilateral sternopharyngeal branch of the sternocleidomastoid muscle in an aged Caucasian male: a unique cadaveric report

“…A small morphological study in an indian population with 18 cadavers showed that 27.8% of the specimens had SCM variations with three unilateral and two bilateral presentations (6). A different study describes a strap-like muscle originating from the middle third of the clavicle inserting at the transverse process of the C3 vertebra (14).…”

“…Also, understanding the relevance of such variations is very important during surgical interventions in the neck area such as neck dissection. Various anomalies in the proximal heads of SCM have been described before (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17). During the developmental process of the shoulder girdle musculature, SCM and trapezoid muscles derive from the lateral plate mesoderm as a common embryonic source (18,19).…”

Cleidocervical muscle: a mini literature survey of a human muscle variation

“…This shows a very drastic difference in results depending on which reports was analyzed for this study. The explanation could be that a drastic lower number of female cadavers are available for anatomical dissection in many parts of the world in comparison to their male counterparts (30). In the second half of the 19 th century, gender difference in the cadaver subjects reported by Wood and Sharpey showed that almost two-third of the subjects were male (3).…”