Nuchal Ligament Anatomy

Given there is another round of ugly top level dressage head and neck positions, I thought I would share some valid information about the neck which I was studying during my PhD. I’ll start with The Nuchal Ligament.

The Anatomy- It consists of a funicular cord which is essentially a big strong bungee cord that runs from the occiput (top/back of the skull) to the first thoracic vertebrae and then becomes the supraspinous ligament which ends at the tail. In the cervical portion a lamellar sheet branches off from the funicular cord and attaches to the second-fifth cervical vertebrae on the spinous processes (top portion) which help to suspend the vertebrae in the neck (helping reduce the amount of muscular effort to support the neck).

Image from Denoix & Pailloux, Physcial Therapy and Massage for the Horse (2011)

This amazing sheet is made up of multiple bands and is almost like a trampoline. Unfortunately due to domestication there is variation in where the lamellar attaches, there is evidence to suggest it was SUPPOSED to be attached to the spinous processes C2 to C7 but it has only been found up to C5 or C6 and sometimes hardly on C5. I have shown two examples from dissections I have done where you can see the variation in the lamellar attachment (also note the difference in its “fullness”). This means there is no elastic support of the lamellar to the base of the neck. This may contribute to excessive movement in the base of the neck which then needs to be supported by the musculature (and expend energy in doing so). This is one of the reasons why support of the base of the neck when training is so important. Part two I will go into more detail about the biomechanics of this structure.