Muscles
Splenius Capitis Trigger Points
Symptom Area: Head and Neck
Splenius Capitis 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. Extends and rotates the head to the same side.
Where you feel it
When the Splenius Capitis holds active trigger points, you usually notice it as headaches or migraines. Where the pain spreads: Vertex of the head — 'pain on top of the head'. What often sets it off: Sustained head rotation, side-sleeping with head turned, looking up for long periods.
Overview
Extends and rotates the head to the same side. Trigger points here are common in everyday and athletic populations and frequently contribute to the referred pain patterns described below.
Trigger point locations
Posterior neck just deep to the upper trapezius, between the occiput and upper thoracic spine.
Referred pain pattern
Vertex of the head — 'pain on top of the head'.
Palpation & testing
Palpate the muscle belly along its accessible course. Reproduction of the patient's familiar pain on palpation supports involvement.
Common causes
Sustained head rotation, side-sleeping with head turned, looking up for long periods.
Self-care & clinical treatment
Chin tucks, side-bend stretches, pillow correction. Clinically: needling and contract-relax.
Treatment protocol
For Splenius Capitis, the general protocol applies: sustained pressure release on the taut band, then stretch and active movement in the newly gained range.
Position and palpation: Palpate the muscle belly along its accessible course.
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
Secondary Symptoms
Often confused with
These muscles cause the same primary symptoms, so they are checked together:
Related muscles in this region
Related articles
- Why pain spreads: satellite trigger points, and whether deactivating one quiets its neighbours
- The headache that arrives at the end of the day: a suboccipital and trapezius treatment plan
- The muscle behind a stiff neck you cannot turn: levator scapulae trigger points
- Headaches or Migraines: which trigger points cause it and how to treat them
References
- • Travell & Simons — Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction
Medically reviewed by: Marco Aruffo — physiotherapist since 2006, specialised in myofascial pain · Last reviewed:
