| Latin | Venter occipitalis musculi occipitofrontalis |
|---|---|
| Origin |
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| Insertion |
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| Action |
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| Nerve | Facial nerve (CN VII), posterior auricular branch |
| Name | Latin occiput, 'back of the head'. |
Palpation
- Client supine with the head resting in your hands, or prone with the face in the face cradle; sit or stand at the head of the table.
- Find the external occipital protuberance (the bump at the back of the skull) and the mastoid process (the bony bump behind the ear).
- Place your finger pads on the skull just above the line between these two points, about halfway along it (the muscle lies to the side of the midline, not on it).
- Ask the client to raise the eyebrows strongly; you may feel a slight tightening as the scalp is drawn back.
The occipitalis is a small, thin muscle at the back of the head, above the ridge where the neck muscles attach to the skull. It joins the Frontalis through the galea aponeurotica, a tough sheet of tissue over the top of the skull, and the two work together to move the scalp. Some references, including Terminologia Anatomica, treat them as one muscle, the occipitofrontalis.
In a Head, face and scalp — 20 min massage, slow circles with the finger pads over the back of the head and a gentle “shampoo” movement that moves the scalp over the skull are popular with clients. With the client supine, the weight of the head resting in your hands gives a comfortable, sustained compression over the occipitalis.
Tell the occipitalis apart from the Suboccipitals and the top of the Trapezius by height: the occipitalis lies on the skull above the superior nuchal line (between the External occipital protuberance and the Mastoid process), while the neck muscles attach on and below that line.