mastoid process

Bone: Mastoid process
Side view of head, showing surface relations of bones. (Mastoid process labeled near center.)
Mastoid process
Latin	processus mastoideus ossis temporalis
Gray's	subject #34 141

The mastoid process is a conical prominence projecting from the undersurface of the mastoid portion of the temporal bone. It is located just behind the external acoustic meatus, and lateral to the styloid process. Its size and form vary somewhat; it is larger in the male than in the female.

This process serves for the attachment of the Digastric, Sternocleidomastoid, Splenius capitis, and Longissimus capitis muscles.

The word is derived from the Greek 'masto-', alluding to its resemblance to the breast.

See also

• mastoiditis
• mastoidectomy

External links

• lesson5 at The Anatomy Lesson by Wesley Norman (Georgetown University)

This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained herein may be outdated.