Pharyngeal airway-stabilizing function of sternohyoid and sternothyroid muscles in the rabbit

The upper airway is vulnerable to collapse from negative intraluminal pressures during inspiration. The tongue muscles, the genioglossi and geniohyoids, by contracting during inspiration, appear to function to resist this collapse. This study supports the hypothesis that two cervical strap muscles, the sternohyoid and sternothyroid, have a similar function. First, phasic inspiratory electromyographic activity was recorded from the sternohyoid and sternothyroid muscles of nine anesthetized rabbits during tidal breathing. Furthermore, each muscle showed a progressive increase in electromyographic activity with airway occlusion. Second, in eight rabbits, by determining the amount of negative pressure required to collapse the upper airway (airway closing pressure determination), it was shown that upper airway stability improved with electrical stimulation of either the paired sternohyoid or sternothyroid muscles. In addition, in 12 freshly killed rabbits, mechanical tension, mimicking the contraction of either the sternohyoid or sternothyroid, improved airway stability. Finally, observations of the pharyngeal lumen utilizing a fiber-optic endoscope, revealed concentric narrowing of the oro- and nasopharynx when airway pressure was lowered and concentric widening when tension was increased in the sternohyoid or sternothyroid muscles. These findings support the hypothesis that phasic inspiratory contraction of the sternohyoid and sternothyroid muscles functions to resist pharyngeal airway collapse due to negative intraluminal pressures.