thyroid cartilage

The thyroid cartilage is the largest of the cartilages of the larynx, with its superior pole sitting at the level of the C4 vertebra.

Gross anatomy

The thyroid cartilage consists of bilateral flattened laminae that are fused anteriorly in the median plane to form the laryngeal prominence. Each lamina possesses an oblique ridge with a tubercle superiorly and inferiorly. Posteriorly, its borders are free and project upwards and downwards as the superior and inferior horns. The superior horns attach to the hyoid bone by the thyrohyoid membrane and lateral thyrohyoid ligaments, and the inferior horns articulate with the cricoid cartilage at the cricothyroid joint.

Musculoligamentous attachments

Anatomical variants

  • thyroid cartilage calcification
  • cyst-like change in the thyroid cartilage
  • agenesis of the thyroid horns
  • triticeal cartilage
  • ectopic superior thyroid horns
  • lateral thyrohyoid ossification
  • terminal segmentation of the thyroid horns
  • buckled thyroid cartilage

Siehe auch: