Muscular system · Head and neck
Geniohyoid !
The geniohyoid is a short muscle from the inside of the chin to the hyoid bone, above the floor of the mouth; it pulls the hyoid forward.
Official name: Geniohyoid muscle
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What it is
A short muscle from the inside of the chin to the hyoid, above the mylohyoid.
What it does
Pulls the hyoid forward.
Key facts
- Origin
- Inferior mental spine
- Insertion
- Body of the hyoid
- Action
- Pulls the hyoid forward; depresses the mandible
- Nerve
- C1 fibres via the hypoglossal nerve
- Blood supply
- Lingual artery
Relations
- Above
- Genioglossus, whose lower fibres run alongside it from the inner chin
- Below
- Mylohyoid, which separates it from the anterior belly of the digastric
- Medial
- Its partner of the other side, in contact at the midline
How to find it
It cannot be felt. On sagittal MRI it is the short band from the inner chin to the hyoid bone under the genioglossus; in a submental approach it is reached by splitting the mylohyoid raphe.
Examination
- Bedside palpation during a dry swallow, with fingers on the hyoid bone and the thyroid cartilage: a short, slow or weak upward and forward movement suggests poor action of the suprahyoid muscles
On imaging
On a videofluoroscopic swallow study its work shows as the forward movement of the hyoid bone; reduced hyoid excursion goes with residue in the pharynx and a higher risk of aspiration.
Clinical notes
- Weakness of the suprahyoid muscles after stroke, with ageing or after head and neck radiotherapy reduces hyoid movement and contributes to dysphagia; head-lift (Shaker) exercises are used to train this group
- Advancing the inner chin (genioplasty or genial tubercle advancement) moves its origin forward, pulling the hyoid and tongue base forward in some operations for obstructive sleep apnoea
Development
Unlike the other suprahyoid muscles it does not come from a pharyngeal arch: it belongs to the occipital and upper cervical muscle group of the tongue and strap muscles, hence its C1 supply through the hypoglossal nerve.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
What is the nerve supply of the geniohyoid?
C1 fibres carried by the hypoglossal nerve.
What role does the geniohyoid play in the pharyngeal phase of swallowing?
It is the main muscle pulling the hyoid and larynx forward, which helps open the upper oesophageal sphincter.
On a videofluoroscopic swallow study, what does reduced hyoid excursion from geniohyoid weakness go with?
Residue in the pharynx and a higher risk of aspiration.
Educational information, not medical advice. For any symptom, see a health professional.
Its names
- Official Latin (TA2)
- musculus geniohyoideus TA2 2166
- Official Spanish (DeCS)
- Músculo geniohioideo
- English (TA2)
- Geniohyoid muscle
Related
Sources: Terminologia Anatomica (TA2); Anatomy, Head and Neck: Suprahyoid Muscle; 11.3 Axial Muscles of the Head, Neck, and Back (OpenStax (Rice University), 2022) · adapted, CC BY 4.0.
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.
