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4.5.4 Vocal ligaments, vocal opening
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(2.29)

Now that we’ve looked at the skeleton of the larynx, it’s time to get acquainted with the vocal ligament and the vocal opening. To see the vocal ligament, we’ll look at a specimen in which the lamina of the thyroid cartilage has been removed on the right side.

Here are the vocal processes of the arytenoid cartilages. We’ll add the vocal ligaments to the picture. Here they are. The vocal ligaments run from the thyroid cartilage in the mid-line, to the tips of the vocal processes of the arytenoid cartilages. They’re fixed in front, and highly mobile behind. Their tension is affected by the tilt of the cricoid cartilage.

The gap between the vocal ligaments is affected by rotation of the arytenoid cartilage. The vocal ligament isn’t an isolated structure. It’s the free upper border of this cone-shaped sheet of membrane, the conus elasticus.

The conus elasticus is attached below, all the way along the upper border of the cricoid cartilage. Its upper border, which is free from here to here, forming the vocal ligament, is attached further back to the arytenoid cartilage. The anterior part of the conus elasticus is firmly attached to the thyroid cartilage, forming the crico-thyroid ligament, which we saw earlier.

Here’s the right half of the larynx with the mucous membrane intact. The conus elasticus is just beneath the mucous membrane, here. The mucous membrane is closely attached to the vocal ligament, and also to the inner aspect of the arytenoid cartilage.

At the level of the vocal folds, there’s a narrowing betwen the walls of the larynx. Its anatomical name is the rima glottidis, but in this tape we’ll refer to it as the vocal opening. Its shape is extremely variable, depending on the movements of the arytenoid cartilages.

Here’s the vocal opening in ...

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(2.29)

Now that we’ve looked at the skeleton of the larynx, it’s time to get acquainted with the vocal ligament and the vocal opening. To see the vocal ligament, we’ll look at a specimen in which the lamina of the thyroid cartilage has been removed on the right side.

Here are the vocal processes of the arytenoid cartilages. We’ll add the vocal ligaments to the picture. Here they are. The vocal ligaments run from the thyroid cartilage in the mid-line, to the tips of the vocal processes of the arytenoid cartilages. They’re fixed in front, and highly mobile behind. Their tension is affected by the tilt of the cricoid cartilage.

The gap between the vocal ligaments is affected by rotation of the arytenoid cartilage. The vocal ligament isn’t an isolated structure. It’s the free upper border of this cone-shaped sheet of membrane, the conus elasticus.

The conus elasticus is attached below, all the way along the upper border of the cricoid cartilage. Its upper border, which is free from here to here, forming the vocal ligament, is attached further back to the arytenoid cartilage. The anterior part of the conus elasticus is firmly attached to the thyroid cartilage, forming the crico-thyroid ligament, which we saw earlier.

Here’s the right half of the larynx with the mucous membrane intact. The conus elasticus is just beneath the mucous membrane, here. The mucous membrane is closely attached to the vocal ligament, and also to the inner aspect of the arytenoid cartilage.

At the level of the vocal folds, there’s a narrowing betwen the walls of the larynx. Its anatomical name is the rima glottidis, but in this tape we’ll refer to it as the vocal opening. Its shape is extremely variable, depending on the movements of the arytenoid cartilages.

Here’s the vocal opening in a living person, seen from above. In quiet breathing the opening is diamond shaped. When we breathe deeply it widens to a triangle. When we speak or sing it narrows to a slit. When we hold our breath, it closes completely.

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