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Pharyngeal constrictor muscles: magnified reference view with a numbered learning marker. The complete original plate is available in the next view.
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Pharyngeal constrictor muscles

Circular outer pharyngeal muscle layer. Superior, middle and inferior constrictors overlap. Posterior fibres meet at pharyngeal raphe.

Zoom in, then drag to inspect. Keyboard: + / − to zoom, arrows to pan, 0 to reset. Tap the numbered markers to explore parts.

Pharyngeal constrictor muscles: magnified reference view with a numbered learning marker. The complete original plate is available in the next view.

Image: Gray’s Anatomy (1918); illustrator attribution on original plate · Source / original · Public domain

Numbered markers and focused views are Mediveerse learning overlays; the original reference is linked above.

Pharyngeal constrictor muscles

Pharynx & palate

Pharyngeal constrictor muscles

STRUCTURE & FUNCTION

Understand what you see.

Propel a swallowed bolus inferiorly.

Zoom into the original labels. Practise pointing out each structure, then explain it aloud. Diagrams are teaching references; specimen appearance and slide staining vary.

01 / IDENTIFICATION

How to recognise it.

  1. Circular outer pharyngeal muscle layer
  2. Superior, middle and inferior constrictors overlap
  3. Posterior fibres meet at pharyngeal raphe
02 / KEY STRUCTURES

Point them out.

Tap a number to open its reference, zoom in and locate the structure. Numbers stay the same across views. This key follows landmarks visible in the reference images.

Related features & study points (3)

Additional relations, attachments or microscopic details to revise alongside this plate. These are separate from its numbered image landmarks.

  • Superior constrictor
  • Middle constrictor
  • Inferior constrictor
03 / VIVA PRACTICE

Think first. Then reveal.

Say your answer aloud before opening the suggested response.

Examiner-style prompts: identify the structure, explain its relations, then answer the applied follow-up. These are revision questions, not authenticated past papers.

01Identify pharyngeal constrictor muscles and give its main role.
SUGGESTED ANSWER

Circular outer pharyngeal muscle layer. Superior, middle and inferior constrictors overlap. Posterior fibres meet at pharyngeal raphe. Propel a swallowed bolus inferiorly.

02What is their principal motor supply?
SUGGESTED ANSWER

Vagus through the pharyngeal plexus, with additional laryngeal-nerve contributions to inferior constrictor regions.

03What is the lower part of inferior constrictor called?
SUGGESTED ANSWER

Cricopharyngeus; it contributes to the upper oesophageal sphincter mechanism.

04Point out three important relations and explain their significance.
SUGGESTED ANSWER

Superior constrictor; Middle constrictor; Inferior constrictor. Propel a swallowed bolus inferiorly. Use the reference plate to locate the region; the relationship map organises the associations and is not drawn to scale.

Read the references.

Credited anatomical plates, microscopy and university teaching references. Individual image credits appear below the viewer. Historical plates can use older terminology; use the lesson text for current names.