Hitherto unknown detailed muscle anatomy in an 8-week-old embryo

Congenital muscle diseases, such as myopathies or dystrophies, occur relatively frequently, with estimated incidences of up to 4.7 per 100 000 newborns. To diagnose congenital diseases in the early stages of pregnancy, and to interpret the results of increasingly advanced in utero imaging techniques, a profound knowledge of normal human morphological development of the locomotor system and the nervous system is necessary. Muscular development, however, is an often neglected topic or is only described in a general way in embryology textbooks and papers. To provide the required detailed and updated comprehensive picture of embryologic muscular anatomy, three-dimensional (3D) reconstructions were created based on serial histological sections of a human embryo at Carnegie stage 23 (8 weeks of development, crown-rump length of 23.8 mm), using Amira reconstruction software. Reconstructed muscles, tendons, bones and nerves were exported in a 3D-PDF file to permit interactive viewing. Almost all adult skeletal muscles of the trunk and limbs could be individually identified in their relative adult position. The pectoralis major muscle was divided in three separate muscle heads. The reconstructions showed remarkable highly developed extraocular, infrahyoid and suprahyoid muscles at this age but surprisingly also absence of the facial muscles that have been described to be present at this stage of development. The overall stage of muscle development suggests heterochrony of skeletal muscle development. Several individual muscle groups were found to be developed earlier and in more detail than described in current literature.