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Interspinales lumborum: anatomy, location and function

Short paired muscles between the spinous processes of adjacent lumbar vertebrae. Assist extension of the lumbar spine and have a mainly proprioceptive role.

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Structures

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Highlighted in the model: Interspinales lumborum. Click any part to read about it, or switch off “Highlight topic” to see the whole body. 3D data: BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0; meshes simplified and recoloured. The model is an adult male.

Interspinales lumborum at a glance

What it is
Short paired muscles between the spinous processes of adjacent lumbar vertebrae.
Location
Lie on either side of the interspinous ligament between spinous processes of adjacent lumbar vertebrae.
Function
Assist extension of the lumbar spine and have a mainly proprioceptive role.
Body system
Muscular · single, midline structure
FMA ID
FMA71307 (Foundational Model of Anatomy)

Key facts

  • Innervation: dorsal rami of lumbar spinal nerves
  • Lumbar interspinales usually form four pairs, between the five lumbar spinous processes.

Structures next to the interspinales lumborum

The nearest named structures in the 3D model, measured from the centre of each part:

References

  1. Foundational Model of Anatomy: Interspinales lumborum (FMA71307). EMBL-EBI Ontology Lookup Service.
  2. OpenStax. Anatomy and Physiology 2e, §11.2 Naming Skeletal Muscles. Rice University, 2022.
  3. Mitsuhashi N. et al. (2009). BodyParts3D: 3D structure database for anatomical concepts. Nucleic Acids Research 37, D782–D785. Data © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0.

Related anatomy

Explore the whole body in the interactive 3D human anatomy model, or browse the A–Z list of human structures.