A person performs all his actions with the help of muscles. The main functions of the muscular apparatus are: keeping the human body in a state of balance and ensuring its mobility. Muscles allow people to move in space, protect internal organs, provide respiratory, swallowing and other movements necessary for the life support of the body. The total mass of functional tissue in an adult is about one third of its weight, and the total number is more than six hundred different muscles.
Splenius head muscle: anatomy and function
Consider one of the main human muscles. The belt muscle of the head is located below the trapezius and is covered by its upper section. It starts at the base of the skull in the area of the bulge behind the ear, then runs diagonally to the vertebrae in the middle of the neck and upper back at the level between the third and fifth thoracic vertebrae. When lowering the head back and forth, to the side, during its rotation and straightening of the neck, the belt muscle of the head is involved, the functions of which are to performthese movements.
Symptoms and causes of muscle damage
Like all organs in the human body, muscles are susceptible to disease and damage. A person has painful and unpleasant symptoms when the belt muscle of the head is affected. The upper parietal region hurts, the pain is localized inside the skull behind the eyeball. There may be pain shooting from the back of the head to the eyeball. Often such pains are called acute intracranial pain. Patients have visual impairment on the side where the belt muscles of the head and neck are affected. Along with the symptoms listed, patients have neck pain.
Causes of damage to the splenius head muscle can be:
- neck injury;
- strong or sudden overload;
- prolonged holding of head and neck forward;
- constant stoop.
Tired neck muscles are very susceptible to injury when exposed to cold air.
Diagnosis
To diagnose a condition when the splenius head muscle is inflamed, the palpation procedure will help. It should only be carried out by an experienced medical specialist. In the course of palpation, painful points are detected at the attachment points of the belt muscle, the upper part of the trapezius muscle and the muscle that lifts the scapula. The patient's head tilts towards the affected tissue. This procedure provides muscle relaxation. The space between the base of the neck and the shoulder girdle is palpated, while the patient's head turns inopposite direction from the affected muscle to stretch it. The upper part of the muscle is also palpated in the place where its upper ends meet - the trapezius and sternoclavicular-mastoid. Painful sensations in the patient during palpation will help to identify foci of muscle damage and take measures to eliminate them.
To determine pain during active and passive movements, a range of motion study is performed.
Prevention
So that the belt muscle of the head does not cause pain and does not cause other symptoms of its inflammation, doctors recommend following a few simple rules:
- Under no circumstances should you engage in self-diagnosis and self-treatment. If symptoms of the disease appear, it is necessary to consult a specialist doctor for diagnosis and treatment, and procedures.
- You need to watch your posture: avoid strong or constant tension in the cervical spine, do not tilt your head too much when working at the computer, when reading, at the workplace.
- At home and at work, it is necessary to perform gymnastic exercises for the shoulder and cervical sections of the back.
- Avoid drafts.
Treatment
For the treatment of a painful condition of the splenius head muscle, a post-isometric relaxation procedure is used. It consists in the joint manipulations of the patient and the doctor, aimed at the transition from passive stretching of the splenius muscle of the head togradual and gradual stretching of the muscle and holding it in a new position. This procedure allows you to relieve pain and restore muscle elasticity. This method of treatment is also carried out at home.
The splenius head muscle, like other long neck muscles, often becomes a source of pain, which massage and self-massage will help to cope with. Therapeutic procedures are carried out by professional massage therapists in specialized institutions. To perform self-massage, it is necessary to lie with the back of your head on a pillow, while the muscle relaxes, and it becomes easy to feel it. You need to grab the belt muscle of the head between the fingers. The movements should be light and slow. To eliminate pain and tension, self-massage should be long.
