Myotome

Group of muscles served by a single nerve root

Authors

Affiliations

Nate Yomogida, B.S., SPT

Doctor of Physical Therapy

B.S. in Kinesiology

Chloë Kerstein, B.S., SPT

Doctor of Physical Therapy

B.A. in Neuroscience

A myotome is defined as a muscle or group of muscles served by a single nerve root. Key muscle is perhaps a more accurate term. Manual muscle testing is traditionally used by the clinician to assess the strength of a muscle or muscle group that is representative of the supply from a particular nerve root. Valuable information can be gleaned from these tests, including:

Myotome Table

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Testing

Information gained from these tests:

• The amount of force the muscle is capable of producing
• Whether the amount of force produced varies with the joint angle.

References

1.

Sonoo M. Recent advances in neuroanatomy: The myotome update. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry. 2023;94(8):643-648. doi:10.1136/jnnp-2022-329696