diaphragm
Diaphragma
In 3 atlases
Key points
- The diaphragm is a dome-shaped sheet of muscle and tendon separating the thoracic and abdominal cavities.
- Its sternal, costal and lumbar parts converge on the central tendon.
- Contraction lowers the diaphragm and increases the space available for the lungs during inspiration.
- The phrenic nerve supplies its motor innervation, while major openings transmit the inferior vena cava, oesophagus and aorta.
Definition
A thin musculomebranous barrier that separates the abdominal and thoracic cavities. Often used for breathing control.
Source: UBERON · Licence: CC-BY-3.0
Definition from the Uberon multi-species anatomy ontology (Mungall CJ et al., Genome Biology 2012, 13:R5), https://obophenotype.github.io/uberon/, licensed under CC BY 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).
Relations
- Insertion
- costal margin, rib, xiphoid process, lumbar vertebra, thoracic vertebra
- Action
- inspiration movement
- Innervation
- phrenic nerve
- Arterial supply
- pericardiacophrenic artery
- Venous drainage
- superior phrenic vein
The 3D model shows 12 origin and insertion areas of this muscle.
Neighbouring structures
Practice questions
Read more
Identifiers
- TA2
- 2327
- TA98
- A04.4.02.001
- FMA
- 13295
- UBERON
- 0001103
- Wikidata
- Q9654