Muscles
Platysma Trigger Points
Symptom Area: Head and Neck
Platysma Trigger Points are explored here through their location and referred pain pattern. Muscle knots is an everyday term used for tender muscular spots; myofascial pain describes pain involving muscle and its surrounding connective tissue. Broad superficial neck muscle; trigger points produce a prickling, hot skin sensation over the front of the neck and jaw.
Where you feel it
When the Platysma holds active trigger points, you usually notice it as cheek pain (like sinusitis) and headaches or migraines. Where the pain spreads: A prickling, burning or hot sensation over the front of the neck and lower jaw, distinct from the deep ache of sternocleidomastoid. What often sets it off: Sustained forward head posture, tight collars, stress-related neck tension, post-surgical scarring in the neck, habitual grimacing.
Overview
Platysma is a thin sheet of muscle running from the upper chest and shoulder fascia across the front of the neck to the mandible and lower face. It tenses the skin of the neck and pulls down the corner of the mouth. Its referred sensation is superficial rather than deep.
Trigger point locations
Points in the sheet over the anterolateral neck, at the level of the thyroid cartilage and lower jaw.
Referred pain pattern
A prickling, burning or hot sensation over the front of the neck and lower jaw, distinct from the deep ache of sternocleidomastoid.
Palpation & testing
Very light pinch or flat-hand skin-rolling over the front of the neck; the muscle lies immediately under the skin, so pressure must stay superficial and away from the carotid.
Common causes
Sustained forward head posture, tight collars, stress-related neck tension, post-surgical scarring in the neck, habitual grimacing.
Self-care & clinical treatment
Gentle skin-rolling and superficial massage, posture and breathing work, stress management. Clinically: light manual release only; deep pressure and needling in the anterior neck triangle are avoided.
Treatment protocol
For Platysma, the general protocol applies: sustained pressure release on the taut band, then stretch and active movement in the newly gained range.
Position and palpation: Very light pinch or flat-hand skin-rolling over the front of the neck; the muscle lies immediately under the skin, so pressure must stay superficial and away from the carotid.
Regional precaution for clinicians: In the neck and jaw, needle placement must respect the carotid sheath, the external jugular vein, the vertebral artery in the suboccipital region and the lung apex behind the lower scalenes and the medial supraclavicular fossa.
Primary Symptoms
Often confused with
These muscles cause the same primary symptoms, so they are checked together:
Related muscles in this region
Related articles
References
- • triggerpoints.net — reference
Medically reviewed by: Marco Aruffo — physiotherapist since 2006, specialised in myofascial pain · Last reviewed:
